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Biomedical subjects

R Cunningham

Publications and source records attributed to R Cunningham.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
PubMed1999

CathSim: an intravascular catheterization simulator on a PC.

The development of a medical simulator that incorporates substantial training value and realism into an affordable product has been a huge challenge for the simulation community. A large hurdle to making an inexpensive simulator has been the high cost of the computers needed for adequate realism. We have met this challenge by developing CathSim, a low-cost medical simulator that integrates force feedback, multimedia, and 3D graphics simulation technology on an industry standard PC. This product is commercially available and is currently being used by numerous training institutions and hospitals. The CathSim system includes software and a force feedback interface device. The platform and device can be used to train health care providers to perform needle-stick medical procedures. Our first module teaches users the techniques of peripheral intravenous (i.v.) catheterization. Other training modules that will be added to the CathSim platform include central venous catheter (CVC) insertion and peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) placement. This paper discusses the challenges of this project and the trade-offs and solutions that we developed to overcome them. We describe our process of analyzing and prioritizing the medical tasks necessary to correctly perform peripheral intravenous catheterization. This analysis and prioritization was used to decide which tasks would be included in the simulator and how the included tasks would be replicated. We discuss the method by which we obtained the needed realism in the 3D graphics rendering and in the tactile feedback of the input device. We illustrate how we blended together simulation and multimedia technology to ensure adequate immersion and training efficacy, while keeping the system cost to a minimum.

Computer Simulation↗
PubMed1999

PreOp endoscopic simulator: a PC-based immersive training system for bronchoscopy.

The high cost of simulators that offer adequate realism for training has been a major challenge for the simulation community. The cost of the computers alone has been too high for most training institutions to afford. We have met this challenge by developing the PreOp Endoscopic Simulator, our second generation of low-cost medical simulators. The PreOp system integrates multimedia, 3D graphics simulation, and force feedback technology on a PC. This paper discusses the challenges of this project and the trade-offs and solutions that we developed to overcome them. We discuss our process of analyzing and prioritizing the medical tasks necessary to correctly perform flexible bronchoscopy. In addition, we illustrate how we blended together simulation and multimedia technology to ensure adequate immersion and training efficacy, while keeping the system cost to a minimum.

Biopsy↗
PubMed1998

The dependence of amino acid pair correlations on structural environment.

A statistical analysis was performed to determine to what extent an amino acid determines the identity of its neighbors and to what extent this is determined by the structural environment. Log-linear analysis was used to discriminate chance occurrence from statistically meaningful correlations. The classification of structures was arbitrary, but was also tested for significance. A list of statistically significant interaction types was selected and then ranked according to apparent importance for applications such as protein design. This showed that, in general, nonlocal, through-space interactions were more important than those between residues near in the protein sequence. The highest ranked nonlocal interactions involved residues in beta-sheet structures. Of the local interactions, those between residues i and i + 2 were the most important in both alpha-helices and beta-strands. Some surprisingly strong correlations were discovered within beta-sheets between residues and sites sequentially near to their bridging partners. The results have a clear bearing on protein engineering studies, but also have implications for the construction of knowledge-based force fields.

Amino Acids↗