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Biomedical subjects

D E Robinson

Publications and source records attributed to D E Robinson.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1986

Quantitative sonography.

The review presents a perspective on ultrasonic techniques which place numerical values on properties of tissue or physiological function. Two distinct approaches to tissue characterisation are identified and the various techniques employed are reviewed. The range of Doppler techniques currently in use or under development are described. The potential roles of the various techniques are discussed, using clinical results from the Ultrasonics Institute as a basis. Attenuation measurements show a considerable spread in results, but sound speed appears to correlate closely with the degree of fibrosis in liver and spleen. Other methods have been found useful in specialised areas. The use of pulsed Doppler with a resolution cell sufficiently large to encompass the entire vessel, in conjunction with B-mode imaging to determine geometry, permits volumetric flow measurements to be made in deep vessels and reveals previously inaccessible physiological data. The use of analysis techniques to provide quantitative information in the physiological state or function of tissue promises to add a new dimension to diagnostic ultrasound.

Doppler Effect↗
PubMed1986

Models of auditory masking: a molecular psychophysical approach.

Gilkey et al. [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 78, 1207-1219 (1985)] measured hit proportions and false alarm proportions for detecting a 500-Hz tone at each of four starting phase angles in each of 25 reproducible noise samples. In the present paper, their results are modeled by fitting the general form of the electrical analog model of Jeffress [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 48, 480-488 (1967)] to the diotic data. The best-fitting configurations of this model do not correspond to energy detectors or to envelope detectors. A detector composed of a 50-Hz-wide single-tuned filter, followed by a half-wave rectifier and an integrator with an integration time of 100 to 200 ms fits the data of all four subjects relatively well. Linear combinations of the outputs of several detectors that differ in center frequency or integration window provide even better fits to the data. These linear combinations assign negative weights to some frequencies or to some time intervals, suggesting that a subject's decision is based on a comparison of information in different spectral or temporal portions of the stimulus.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1985

Effects of masker waveform and signal-to-masker phase relation on diotic and dichotic masking by reproducible noise.

The proportions of hits and false alarms were estimated for the detection of a 500-Hz sinusoidal signal in each of 25, reproducible samples of wideband, white, Gaussian noise. The effects of signal phase were investigated under diotic (MoSo) and dichotic (MoS pi) conditions and compared to the predictions of two major models of binaural hearing. Averaging the data over samples obscured important across-sample and across-subject differences in performance. The proportions of hits and false alarms for individual noise samples presented under the MoSo condition were highly correlated with those for the same noise samples under the dichotic MoS pi condition, suggesting that the cues determining performance under these conditions are related. Signal-to-masker phase had a large effect on the proportion of hits under the MoSo condition, but only a small effect under the MoS pi condition. The Vector model predicts a large effect of signal phase under the MoS pi condition, and is, therefore, imcompatible with this aspect of the data. The expected value of the decision variable of the EC model is independent of signal phase. However, when the variance of the decision variable is also considered, the EC model does predict changes in the proportion of hits with the phase of the signal, comparable to those observed here. Further, it was shown that, if minor changes in the form of the EC model's decision variable or in the distribution of the internal noise parameters are assumed, the expected value of the decision variable also changes with the phase of the signal.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1984

Lateral deconvolution of ultrasonic beams.

A number of papers have appeared recently describing methods of lateral resolution improvement in ultrasonic images by deconvolution of the amplitude detected cross-beam characteristic. It is the intention of this paper to demonstrate that such methods of resolution improvement are appropriate only for a limited class of targets. In general, the effect of interference between the r.f. signals from multiple targets at differing distances is such that the amplitude beam width obtained for these targets cannot be considered as the linear combination of shifted replicas of the amplitude beam width for an individual target. This is a consequence of the non-linear character of the detection process. In these cases the method of deconvolving the detected responses, although capable of giving reduced spot sizes, makes errors in the position of the images and is susceptible to false images and sidelobes . The phenomenon is demonstrated with computer and experimental data on point targets.

Computers↗
PubMed1984

Frequency domain processing for ultrasonic attenuation measurement in liver.

A frequency domain signal processing scheme is developed for measuring attenuation and attenuation slope in vivo, using equally spaced depth samples and linear regression techniques. The algorithm may be expressed in terms of linear, commuting operators acting on an array of log power spectra. By interchanging operators, a computationally efficient scheme may be developed, and the accuracy of the result assessed in terms of tissue uniformity and frequency linearity. Corresponding algorithms are demonstrated for measurement of attenuation at particular frequencies and attenuation in focal lesions. Measurements have been made using an Octoson water-delay echoscope on both normal and pathological livers. Variation of attenuation with a number of disease states has been found.

Colonic Neoplasms↗
PubMed1984

Beam pattern (diffraction) correction for ultrasonic attenuation measurement.

The measurement of tissue attenuation from pulse-echo data has been widely investigated. This paper examines correction of the measurements for the effect of the transducer beam. Computer and experimental studies are performed on a number of reflectors including smooth and rough planes, ideal point scatterers, T.M. material and liver and spleen tissue. It is shown that the corrections obtained from T.M. phantom material differ from those obtained using in vivo tissue as the reflector and corrections for liver and spleen differ markedly. Comment is made on the possibility of using "beam correction" itself as a tissue characterization parameter.

Acoustics↗
PubMed1983

Unscheduled DNA synthesis tests. A report of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Gene-Tox Program.

The utility of unscheduled DNA synthesis (UDS) testing for screening potentially hazardous chemicals was evaluated using the published papers and technical reports available to the UDS Work Group. A total of 244 documents were reviewed. Based on criteria defined in advance for evaluation of the results, 169 were rejected. From the 75 documents accepted, results were reviewed for 136 chemicals tested using autoradiographic approaches and for 147 chemicals tested using liquid scintillation counting (LSC) procedures; 38 chemicals were tested by both approaches to measure UDS. Since there were no documents available that provided detailed recommendations of UDS screening protocols or criteria for evaluating the results, the UDS Work Group presents suggested protocols and evaluation criteria suitable for measuring and evaluating UDS by autoradiography in primary rat hepatocytes and diploid human fibroblasts and by the LSC approach in diploid human fibroblasts. UDS detection is an appropriate system for inclusion in carcinogenicity and mutagenicity testing programs, because it measures the repair of DNA damage induced by many classes of chemicals over the entire mammalian genome. However, for this system to be utilized effectively, appropriate metabolic activation systems for autoradiographic measurements of UDS in human diploid fibroblasts must be developed, the nature of hepatocyte-to-hepatocyte variability in UDS responses must be determined, and the three suggested protocols must be thoroughly evaluated by using them to test a large number of coded chemicals of known in vivo mutagenicity and carcinogenicity.

Animals↗
PubMed1983

Buying information systems.

When purchasing information systems, the buyer or manager must be able to account for many types of details. Major considerations include a total awareness of costs relating to conversion, site preparation, equipment, software, maintenance, and supplies. The buyer's needs, as well as the system's capabilities, must be carefully weighed. In addition, a hidden element, the true cost of making the purchasing decision, is a vital consideration in the process of choosing the best available information system.

Computers↗
PubMed1982

Measurement of velocity of propagation from ultrasonic pulse-echo data.

A method is proposed for determining velocity of propagation of ultrasound in tissue by processing the pulse-echo data obtained from a compound scan. Individual sectors from different transducer positions are reconstructed and a suitable area common to the two sectors is selected. Cross-correlation of the region of interest is used to detect an apparent shift in the image due to refractive effects. The refractive effects are analysed by a ray-tracing procedure to determine an effective velocity within the tissue. The system has been tested using the U.I. Octoson as input device and both model targets with known velocity of propagation and in vivo liver tissue. The accuracy in the model experiment was +/- 5 ms-1 while the repeatability of measurements in tissue was +/- 15 ms-1. techniques for extending the method to multiple region systems are suggested.

Abdomen↗
PubMed1982

Forward masking of diotic and dichotic clicks by noise.

The first experiment reported here measured thresholds for clicks in forward masking as a function of the masker level and as a function of the temporal relation of a 6-kHz low-pass noise masker to the click (300-msec duration with a 20-msec temporal gap or 10-msec duration with a 5-msec gap). Also varied were the spectral content of the click (low-pass filtered at 1 or 5 kHz) and the interaural phase of the click (0 or pi). The difference in frequency content had no effect on the amount of masking for the 300-msec masker, while with the 10-msec masker greater masking was found for the 1-kHz click. This combination (1 kHz, 10 msec) was also the only one to produce Masking Level Differences (MLDs) when the click was presented dichotically. A second experiment investigated the effects of combining the maskers used in the first experiment. Additional masking (above that predicted by an energy sum) was found, as has been reported elsewhere [Penner and Shiffrin, A. Acoust. Soc. Am. 67, 617-627 (1980)]. However, the magnitude of this additional masking was decreased for certain conditions. These data conflict with the predictions of additivity of masking obtained from a model proposed by Penner and Shiffrin and suggest that modifications to that model are needed. The results of both experiments can be explained by assuming that two processes are acting in forward masking [Duifhuis, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 54, 1471-1488 (1973)].

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed1981

Shadowing and enhancement in ultrasonic echograms by reflection and refraction.

The action of reflection and refraction in producing shadows and enhancement in ultrasonic echograms behind cystic structures is well known, but the physical explanations usually used are incomplete. In this paper the emergent beam patterns for a number of cases are plotted and this data used to explain the shadows and enhancement observed. Cases are also illustrated of echoes displayed incorrectly within the shadow region and of reflectors within the shadow region displayed elsewhere. The use of the echographic appearances to assess the velocity of propagation in cystic structures is described.

Image Enhancement↗