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At least 487 records · Page 27Linked to original sources

Sources of error for periodontal probing measurements.

This study determined the relative contribution to probing measurement reliability of several factors, compared with that of random error. Probing measurements were performed by examiners properly trained and calibrated. A total of 5771 pairs of replicate pocket depth (PD) and relative attachment level (RAL) measurements were performed with the Florida Probe. A total of 1488 replicate clinical attachment level (CAL) measurements were performed with the North Carolina 15 mm probe. In addition, longitudinal replicate measurements of RAL were performed at 0 and 12 months on 816 sites in 11 patients utilizing the Florida Probe 20 mm disk probe. Measurement reliability with the Florida Probe resulted in mean intraexaminer variances of 0.21 and 0.33, for PD and RAL, respectively (s.e.m. 0.46 mm for PD and 0.57 mm for RAL). Measurement reliability with the conventional probe resulted in mean intra-examiner variances of 0.19 for PD and 0.32 for CAL (s.e.m. 0.44 mm and 0.56 mm). Pocket depth contributed to = 5% of the variability of the intra-examiner variance with both probes with other contributing factors being the individual patient, tooth and site location. Mean intra-examiner reproducibility for duplicate RAL measurement performed at 0 and 12 months was 0.24 and 0.19, respectively (s.e.m. 0.49 mm and 0.43 mm). In conclusion, a mean intra-examiner variance of < or = 0.24 can be achieved for replicate measurements with both electronic and conventional probes for moderate and severe periodontitis patients. Individual examiner, individual patient and site location contribute up to 10% to the overall variance. Hence, the pattern of variability for intra-examiner variance of probing measurements performed with either electronic or conventional probes by trained and calibrated examiners is mostly random error.

Adult↗

On the optical measurement of a corneal thickness. I. Optical principle and sources of error.

The optical principle for the estimation of corneal thickness with a commonly employed method is considered. The theoretical relationship between the apparent and true corneal thickness is described in a simple manner. Based on the theoretical results it could be confirmed that physiological variations in refractive index and radius of the cornea induce an insignificant error in the corneal thickness estimate. The theoretical relationship between apparent and true corneal thickness was compared to the performance of two commercially available pachometers (Haag-Streit and Zeiss). The actual reading of the pachometers was found to be lower than the theoretical reading by a non-linear error amounting to about 0.010 and 0.100 mm at a true corneal thickness of 0.50 and 1.00 mm, respectively.

Anthropometry↗

On the optical measurement of corneal thickness. II. The measuring conditions and sources of error.

The optical measurement of corneal thickness based on oblique viewing of the optical section of the cornea is complicated by the finite width of the incident slit beam. In this report the theoretical and practical aspects of the effect of the slit width on the thickness reading are analysed. In practice, it was not possible to make slit-width independent thickness readings which were reproducible from one observer to another. In addition, the observed slit-width error was found to vary from one patient to another. The lack of reproducible estimate of the corneal thickness is attributed to difficulties associated with an exact definition of the edges of the visible bands of the optical section, which are determined by biological properties of the cornea as well as perceptive properties of the observer. Although inter-observer errors up to 0.02 mm were found, the intra-observer error amounted to only 0.005-0.006 mm (SD) between consecutive readings. Presumably this high intra-observer reproducibility is the result of the auxiliary pin-lights used. Changes in corneal thickness, measured by the same observer, can therefore be determined with great accuracy.

Adult↗

Determining the incident electron fluence for Monte Carlo-based photon treatment planning using a standard measured data set.

An accurate dose calculation in phantom and patient geometries requires an accurate description of the radiation source. Errors in the radiation source description are propagated through the dose calculation. With the emergence of linear accelerators whose dosimetric characteristics are similar to within measurement uncertainty, the same radiation source description can be used as the input to dose calculation for treatment planning at many institutions with the same linear accelerator model. Our goal in the current research was to determine the initial electron fluence above the linear accelerator target for such an accelerator to allow a dose calculation in water to within 1% or 1 mm of the measured data supplied by the manufacturer. The method used for both the radiation source description and the patient transport was Monte Carlo. The linac geometry was input into the Monte Carlo code using the accelerator's manufacturer's specifications. Assumptions about the initial electron source above the target were made based on previous studies. The free parameters derived for the calculations were the mean energy and radial Gaussian width of the initial electron fluence and the target density. A combination of the free parameters yielded an initial electron fluence that, when transported through the linear accelerator and into the phantom, allowed a dose-calculation agreement to the experimental ion chamber data to within the specified criteria at both 6 and 18 MV nominal beam energies, except near the surface, particularly for the 18 MV beam. To save time during Monte Carlo treatment planning, the initial electron fluence was transported through part of the treatment head to a plane between the monitor chambers and the jaws and saved as phase-space files. These files are used for clinical Monte Carlo-based treatment planning and are freely available from the authors.

Algorithms↗

Effect of temperature on inoculum as a potential source of error in agar dilution plate count bactericidal measurements.

The effect of increased temperature on Staphylococcus aureus during the inoculation step of the agar dilution plate count method was investigated as a possible cause of artificially high persister counts. For some isolates, exposure of the inoculum to increased temperature resulted in higher persister counts and diminution or loss of the paradoxical effect. The persister patterns for three representative S. aureus isolates are presented to illustrate the strain- and temperature-dependent nature of the phenomenon. For any isolate, the net effect appears to be caused by an interplay of temperature-induced inoculum loss and temperature-induced cell division cycle blockage. A modification of the agar dilution plate count inoculation step to circumvent such problems is described.

Microbial Sensitivity Tests↗