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Evaluation of One Touch HORIZON--a highly affordable glucose monitor.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Despite the growing evidence on the benefits of self-monitoring in diabetes, the use of these meters has been low in developing countries, particularly India. Cost seems to be the major constraint. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the accuracy of One Touch HORIZON an affordable glucose meter with laboratory assessment of blood glucose. METHODS: 100 subjects with diabetes over the age of 18 years were recruited from the MV Diabetes Specialities Centre, Chennai. All the study subjects had their fasting blood tested for glucose in One Touch HORIZON by finger prick. Fasting blood glucose was also assessed in YSI 2300 STATPLUS (Yellow Springs Instruments, Ohio, USA) glucose analyzer. The Parke's Error Grid model was used to assess the accuracy of the meter against YSI plasma glucose values. RESULTS: Of the total 100 study subjects, 97 were Type 2 diabetic subjects and three were Type 1 diabetic subjects. 62% of the study subjects were males. 89% did not perform SMBG and only 2% of the diabetic subjects performed SMBG daily. The Parke's Error Grid analysis revealed 97% of results to be in Zone A when patient performed the test, 99 - 100% in Zone A when clinical staff performed the test indicating excellent accuracy and precision. CONCLUSION: One Touch HORIZON meter is an affordable meter with good accuracy and precision, specifically designed to cater to the needs of diabetic patients in developing countries.

Adult↗

That loving touch.

Early massage and positive touch in pregnancy can play a big part in helping to build closeness within a family group. I have witnessed an increasing number of dads bringing their babies to baby massage classes--but the power of positive touch can and should start long before that. If the father is encouraged to connect with his baby throughout the pregnancy using positive touch and simple massage, as their baby grows the mother, father and baby will all benefit.

Father-Child Relations↗

Mycobacterial pseudotumors of lymph node. A report of two cases diagnosed at the time of intraoperative consultation using touch imprint preparations.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this report is to emphasize the diagnostic utility of intraoperative touch imprint preparations in the evaluation of Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare-infected lymph node biopsy specimens obtained from human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients. PATIENTS: Two human immunodeficiency virus-positive men, 41 and 29 years of age, with marked lymphadenopathy clinically suspicious for malignant neoplasm. RESULTS: Intraoperative touch imprints of two lymph node biopsy specimens rapidly demonstrated the presence of numerous intracellular organisms in Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare-infected lymph nodes, including one case of mycobacterial spindle cell pseudotumor. CONCLUSIONS: Intraoperative touch imprint preparations are helpful in the evaluation of lymph node biopsy specimens obtained from human immunodeficiency virus-positive patients and allow rapid diagnosis of Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare infection.

Adult↗

Myocardial revascularization using the "no-touch" technique, with mild systemic hypothermia, in patients with a calcified ascending aorta.

Modifications in the standard technique for coronary artery bypass grafting are recommended in presence of a calcified ascending aorta, to avoid clamp injury or atheroembolism. Between January 1991 and August 1994, we used a "no-touch" technique in 18 patients undergoing myocardial revascularization, who had a heavily calcified and atherosclerotic ascending aorta. Their mean age was 76.1 years (range 63 to 82 years). Cardiopulmonary bypass with mild systemic hypothermia (32 degrees C) was employed in 16 patients; 2 other patients were operated upon without cardiopulmonary bypass. The "no-touch" technique avoids all types of clamps in the aorta. No cardioplegia was given, and no grafts were anastomosed to the aorta. Fifty-two distal anastomoses (mean: 2.9 per patient) were performed, using 37 pedicled arterial grafts (22 internal mammary and 15 gastroepiploic arteries), and 15 free grafts, which were anastomosed proximally to the internal mammary artery. There were no postoperative cerebrovascular accidents. Three patients died (16.7% overall mortality): 1 died of pneumonia, one patient with a large left ventricular aneurysm died in congestive heart failure, and one patient with associated aortic insufficiency died in low cardiac output. Our experience suggests that using pedicled arterial grafts for myocardial revascularization is safe and effective to avoid clamp injury or atheroembolism in patients with a calcified aorta. Deep hypothermia is not necessary when using the "no-touch" technique.

Aged↗

Quality control of "one touch" II blood glucose meters used by nurses in clinical departments.

Most analyses of blood glucose concentrations in our hospital are performed bedside by nurses with One Touch II blood glucose meters. The laboratory is responsible for the test results and therefore a quality control system which includes the performance by the nurses, is necessary. Human serum, spiked sterilised horse blood and (spiked) human blood were tested with 39 One Touch II blood glucose meters for usefulness in extra-laboratory quality control schemes. Serum gave high imprecision (CV > 9%) and leaked through the strips, contaminating the meters. Horse blood gave unacceptable imprecision (CV = 6.7%) and human blood could not be used due to an unpredictable time course of the glucose values in the distributed samples. Addition of NaF increased the CV of the measurements by more than 2%. Only the One Touch control solutions (3 levels) resulted in satisfactory precision (CV = ca. 4%) and are therefore suitable for extra-laboratory quality control of precision. However, accuracy control has to be done within the laboratory with fresh human blood.

Animals↗

[Feasibility of DNA analysis for prognostic evaluations of colorectal cancer using touch preparations and image cytometry].

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the applicability of DNA ploidy analysis by using touch preparations obtained from fresh and frozen tissues on the prognostic evaluations of colorectal cancer, especially the development of hepatic metastases. The specimens obtained from surgically resected colorectal carcinomas (32), and hepatic metastases (4), were lightly touched with the slide glasses. Among the 32 patients with colorectal cancers, 7 had synchronous liver metastases, and 5 metastases developed metachronously. After formalin-fixation and Feulgen staining, the DNA analysis was performed by image cytometer (ICM, CAS200R). The data were expressed as the ploidy patterns and DNA indices (p-DNAI: peak DNA index, m-DNAI: mean DNA index), and were correlated very well with those obtained from cytophotometry. The DNA ploidy pattern among the 32 colorectal cancer specimens were Aneuploid(A) in 16, Polyploid (P) in 7, Diploid (D) in 4 and D+P in 5. The cases with synchronous or metachronous liver metastases had a higher m-DNAI (1.74 +/- 0.28) and were Aneuploid in 8, P in 3, and D+P in 1 case. Aneuploidy or Polyploidy predominated among the cases with metachronous liver metastases (4 in 5 cases), with m-DNAI higher than 1.5. Thus, "m-DNA > 1.5" could be a useful prognostic indicator of the high risk group of liver metastases. The liver metastases specimens had Aneuploid and Polyploid patterns in 2 cases each, with m-DNAI ranging from 1.88 to 2.31. DNA ploidy pattern analysis using touch preparations with image cytometry may be useful in determining the prognosis for colorectal cancer.

Adult↗

Accuracy of the One Touch II whole blood glucose analyzer when used by analysts with diverse technical backgrounds.

BACKGROUND: The accuracy of hand-held analytical systems is dependent on the complexity of the instrument and the technical skills of the tester. We evaluated the analytical performance of the LifeScan One Touch II glucose analyzer when used by persons with various levels of technical skill and experience. METHODS: A medical technologist conducted tests on three One Touch II systems to ensure that the units were functioning properly. The technologist then trained six analysts (a physician, a registered nurse, a licensed practical nurse, a physician assistant, and two patients) in the proper use of the glucose analyzer. RESULTS: In the hands of a medical technologist, the precision of the three glucose analyzers tested was from 1.0% to 1.9% coefficient of variation (CV) and from 2.3% to 4.2% CV for the low- and high-quality control materials, respectively. The day-to-day precision (5-day period) was from 2.1% to 3.6% CV, and from 3.5% to 4.1% CV for the low- and high-quality control materials, respectively. Comparisons of the glucose values (n = 40 fresh patient serum samples) with a reference method yielded a correlation coefficient of 0.992 to 0.993, and an overall bias of -7%. Although the values obtained by the six operators were statistically different, the differences were not clinically relevant. CONCLUSIONS: Our data suggest that the One Touch II glucose analyzer is a reliable system, and that its function is not dependent on the technical skills of the operator.

Blood Glucose↗

Touch-inducible genes for calmodulin and a calmodulin-related protein are located in tandem on a chromosome of Arabidopsis thaliana.

Genes for calmodulin and calmodulin-related proteins in Arabidopsis are up-regulated by a variety of physical stimuli, which include rain, wind and touch [Braam and Davis (1990) Cell 60: 357]. We have isolated five genes for calmodulin (AtCAL1, 2, 3, 5, 6) and one gene for a calmodulin-related protein (AtCAL4) from an Arabidopsis genomic library. Touch stimulus of Arabidopsis plants induces the accumulation of mRNA transcribed from AtCAL4 and AtCAL5, but not from the other isolated genes. The two touch-inducible genes are arrayed in tandem with a short intergenic region of 700 bp but they show different organ-specific patterns of expression.

Arabidopsis↗

[Use of Warm Touch for intraoperative hypothermia].

A 63-year old man was scheduled for nephrectomy and cholecystectomy. Anesthesia was maintained by oxygen-nitrous oxide-isoflurane (0.5 approximately 1%) and epidural anesthesia. Operation was performed with the patient on left decubitus position. At this time, rectal temperature as his core temperature was 35.8 degrees C. Active warming with electrical warming mattress was started and the room temperature was maintained at 25 degrees C during the operation. Thirty minutes after the abdominal incision, rectal temperature decreased to 34.5 degrees C. Active warming was started with forced-air warming system (Warm Touch, Mallinckrodt Medical Co.) on his upper body. Ten minutes after warming, his body temperatures were restored gradually. Three hours after using Warm Touch, rectal temperature recovered to 36.1 degrees C. The intraoperative course was uneventful. At the end of the operation, the patient showed no shivering and general condition was good. In this case, Warm Touch is useful to restore body temperature against intraoperative hypothermia during abdominal surgery.

Anesthesia, Epidural↗

Fundamental study on the size and inter-key spacing of numeric keys for touch screen.

The purpose of this study was to reveal the optimum size and inter-key spacing of numeric square keys for touch screens. Six male students (22-25 years old) and three female students (21-24 years old) volunteered as subjects for this experiment. Each subject took part in data entry tasks using numeric square keys of touch devices. The sizes of keys were 6, 12, 21, 30 and 39 mm and each the inter-key spacing was 0, 3, 6, 12 and 21 mm. Response times with key sizes of 6 and 12 mm were significantly slower than with key sizes of 21 and 30 mm (p < 0.001). Furthermore, the key size of 6 mm significantly caused more errors than the key sizes of 12, 21, 30 and 39 mm (p < 0.05). The response time with inter-key spacing of 3 mm was significantly faster than with that of 0, 6, 12 and 21 mm (p < 0.001). Inter-key spacing of 0 mm significantly produced more errors than other inter-key spacing. Subjective ratings for inter-key spacing of 3, 6 and 12 mm were significantly better than those of 0 and 21 mm (p < 0.05). These results suggested that the optimum size of numeric square keys for touch screens should be more than 21 mm and optimum inter-key spacing should be from 3 to 6 mm. Optimum key size, however, must be selected with regard to the limitation of screen size.

Adult↗

Maternal touch at 1st contact with the newborn infant.

Human mothers have been reported to exhibit a species-characteristic pattern of tactile contact with their newborn infants that begins with fingertip touch of infant extremities and progresses to palmar massaging of the infant trunk. This study presents data on maternal tactile interaction during 10 min of contact following each of 66 deliveries. Most of the women in the study were of Hispanic origin and delivered with midwives in an El Paso, Texas maternity center. Time-sampling techniques were used with tactile behaviors recorded every 10 sec. Most observations began less than 10 min after birth. The statistical analysis revealed that maternal tactile behavior in the 1st 10 min of active interaction is more variable than previously reported. No evidence was offered of a pattern of touch progression: active tactile exploration appeared to vary with the gender of the infant and parity and socioeconomic or sociocultural background of the mother.

Female↗

Recovery of touch after median nerve lesion and subsequent repair.

Many techniques have been developed for the evaluation of peripheral nerve function. Consequently, physicians use different techniques in the clinic. This study describes the evaluation of touch after median nerve lesions in the forearm and repair. In order to evaluate touch, 25 patients, aged 11-51 years (mean, 29 years), were evaluated 3-10.5 years (mean, 5 years) after median nerve repair. The evaluation included the moving two-point discrimination test and Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments. We showed that 32% good-excellent results can be obtained with difficult nerve lesions. The results could have been improved if a sensory reeducation regime had been applied.

Adolescent↗

The neural basis of the behaviorally relevant N1 component of the somatosensory-evoked potential in SI cortex of awake monkeys: evidence that backward cortical projections signal conscious touch sensation.

Studies of touch intensity discrimination in monkeys have identified a component of the somatosensory-evoked cortical potential, N1, generated within 50 ms of the stimulus, that predicts their behavioral performance. This study employed multiple-electrode arrays with relatively high spatial resolution (0.1 or 0.2 mm spacing) to record laminar profiles of somatosensory-evoked potentials (SEPs), multiple unit activity (MUA) and current source-densities (CSDs) at several sites across the postcentral gyri of two awake monkeys. This high resolution laminar analysis strongly supports our earlier hypothesis based upon low resolution data that N1 is generated by synaptic excitation targeted specifically at the most superficial cortical layers I/II: (1) The excitatory nature of N1 was indicated by elevated MUA which was maximal in layer III and extended down to subcortical white matter where fiber activity exceeded prestimulus levels; (2) In addition to CSD analysis, the observation that N1 was maximally negative within 0.10 mm of the border between layers I and II verified the superficial site of N1 synaptic excitation regardless of conductivity boundaries near the pial surface. A review of the anatomical literature finds that the most likely inputs responsible for N1 activation are the "backward" cortico-cortical projections from secondary somatosensory areas to SI which in area 1 are the major source of sensory-related input that specifically terminates in layers I/II. We suggest, therefore, that backward projections are involved in the conscious process of touch sensation as it is signaled by N1.

Animals↗

Psychopharmacological studies in rats responding at touch-sensitive devices.

A multiple choice serial reaction time task was used to investigate visual attention in rats. The intelligence panel consisted of a transparent touch-sensitive device, placed directly in front of a video monitor. Amphetamine (0.2-1.6 mg/kg IP) increased errors of omission and decreased latency to respond, but had no effect on accuracy. The 5-HT agonist quipazine (0.6-2.4 mg/kg IP) increased errors of omission, but did not affect other parameters. ICV administration of hemicholinium-3 (1-4 micrograms) had no effect upon performance. Thus, psychopharmacological manipulations can reliably alter performance in the touch window box, suggesting potential new avenues for rat cognitive testing.

Amphetamine↗

Dynamic and predictive links between touch and vision.

We investigated crossmodal links between vision and touch for moving objects. In experiment 1, observers discriminated visual targets presented randomly at one of five locations on their forearm. Tactile pulses simulating motion along the forearm preceded visual targets. At short tactile-visual ISIs, discriminations were more rapid when the final tactile pulse and visual target were at the same location. At longer ISIs, discriminations were more rapid when the visual target was offset in the motion direction and were slower for offsets opposite to the motion direction. In experiment 2, speeded tactile discriminations at one of three random locations on the forearm were preceded by a visually simulated approaching object. Discriminations were more rapid when the object approached the location of the tactile stimulation and discrimination performance was dependent on the approaching object's time to contact. These results demonstrate dynamic links in the spatial mapping between vision and touch.

Adult↗

Multisensory information for human postural control: integrating touch and vision.

Despite extensive research on the influence of visual, vestibular and somatosensory information on human postural control, it remains unclear how these sensory channels are fused for self-orientation. The focus of the present study was to test whether a linear additive model could account for the fusion of touch and vision for postural control. We simultaneously manipulated visual and somatosensory (touch) stimuli in five conditions of single- and multisensory stimulation. The visual stimulus was a display of random dots projected onto a screen in front of the standing subject. The somatosensory stimulus was a rigid plate which subjects contacted lightly (<1 N of force) with their right index fingertip. In each condition, one sensory stimulus oscillated (dynamic) in the medial-lateral direction while the other stimulus was either dynamic, static or absent. The results qualitatively supported five predictions of the linear additive model in that the patterns of gain and variability across conditions were consistent with model predictions. However, a strict quantitative comparison revealed significant deviations from model predictions, indicating that the sensory fusion process clearly has nonlinear aspects. We suggest that the sensory fusion process behaved in an approximately linear fashion because the experimental paradigm tested postural control very close to the equilibrium point of vertical upright.

Adult↗

Multimodal mechanisms of attention related to rates of spatial shifting in vision and touch.

Covert attention can be directed spatially in several different sensory modalities (e.g. vision and touch). Recent psychological experiments indicate the existence of crossmodal links in spatial attention, but their neural basis in humans remains underspecified. We used positron emission tomography (PET) to assess the role of stimulus modality in the activity of brain regions involved in different rates of spatial attention shifting. A 2 x 2 factorial design manipulated the rate (high versus low) of spatial attention shifts between left and right hemifields, plus the sensory modality (vision versus touch) of stimulation. Two brain regions showed activations related to attentional shift-rate, independent of the stimulated modality: these were the right frontopolar gyrus, and the right posterior superior temporal sulcus (STS). The anterior area showed higher blood flow with the high rate of shifts in spatial attention, while the posterior area showed higher flow during the low rate conditions, where attention was sustained for longer on one side. No area showed a significant rate effect in one modality without an effect in the second modality. These results demonstrate multimodal roles for the activated brain regions in relation to the rate of spatial attention shifting, plus right-hemisphere dominance for this. They also suggest that anterior and posterior regions of the spatial-attention network play different roles in attention shifting.

Adult↗

Light touch contribution to balance in normal bipedal stance.

It has previously been shown that light contact with the finger tip on a fixed surface reduces centre of pressure (CoP) fluctuations in the frontal plane when standing in an unstable posture with the feet in line (tandem Romberg stance). Positive cross-correlations between horizontal finger forces and CoP fluctuations with finger forces exhibiting a phase lead suggest the hand provides sensory input for postural stability. The present study investigates whether this is the case for normal posture. We report reduced CoP fluctuations in the sagittal plane when light touch is permitted during normal bipedal stance. Moreover, we find positive crosscorrelations between finger tip forces and CoP fluctuations which are of similar magnitude and phase lag to those observed in tandem Romberg stance. This shows the utility of hand touch input for regulation of normal upright posture as well as inherently unstable postures such as tandem Romberg.

Adult↗