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PubMed1990

[Systematic procedures in endodontics].

Endodontic treatment is an important part in operative dentistry. While quantity of treatment increases, the quality should not be neglected. Means to improve the individual success rate are shown in the article. The simplification of the armamentarium and systematics of procedures are of utmost importance. As the basic technique the hand instrumentation is described.

Dental Instruments↗
PubMed1975

Semi-automated ECG processing: A simple method to improve efficiency in ECG laboratories.

A method to expedite processing of electrocardiograms (ECGs) is described. The hardware configuration utilizes conventional equipment, and the ECG data is stored in magnetic data cards. The electrocardiographer's interpretation is made using a specially developed code of 253 diagnostic statements of 2 to 9 words each. A minicomputer converts the code into full alpha-numeric description and 2 characters into English statements. The diagnostic print-out appears in the same page as the reproduction of the original ECG data. This system has significantly reduced the ECG processing time, freed manpower to increase availability of technicians and decreased the size of permanent files.

Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted↗
PubMed1975

Electrocardiographic screening by special purpose computer. Correlation with twelve-lead electrocardiogram.

An electrocardiometer (ECM) which computes the T/R ratio of Lead I and simultaneously prints out Lead I was used to screen 1,004 consecutive hospitalized patients for EKG abnormalities. When the combined meter and Lead I print out analyses were used, 77.9% of abnormal EKG's were identified with a false-positive rate of less than 4%. The method is highly specific for detecting EKG abnormalities associated with anterior and lateral left ventricular disease. It could be used as an inexpensive mass screening device for electrocardiographic risk factors associated with coronary disease.

Coronary Disease↗
PubMed1990

Maximum acceptable repetitive lifting workload by Chinese subjects.

This study used psychophysical methods to determine the acceptable mean maximum lifting workload for eight Chinese young male subjects, and examined the effects of lifting technique (including freestyle, stoop and squat), lifting frequency (including 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 lifts/min) and physical characteristics on the maximum acceptable workload. The results are described as follows: (1) The maximum acceptable weights selected by subjects varied from 11.34 to 18.33 kg with changes in lifting technique and frequency. These data were lower than those previously obtained; (2) The upper limit of physiological tolerance over an 8 h workday was also generally lower than previously suggested. However, this upper limit varied with changes in lifting technique and frequency, and in some circumstances it was the same as or even higher than previous limit; (3) Lifting efficiency was affected significantly by technique and frequency. The rank order of efficiency for three lifting techniques were freestyle, stoop and squat. Efficiency was greatest when lifting frequency was between 5 and 6 lifts/min; and (4) The correlations between the maximum acceptable workloads selected by subjects and anthropometric sizes were significant, but those between maximum acceptable workload and isometric strength were not.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

A biomechanical and ergonomic evaluation of patient transferring tasks: bed to wheelchair and wheelchair to bed.

A laboratory study was conducted in an effort to reduce back stress for nursing personnel while performing the patient handling tasks of transferring the patient from bed to wheelchair and wheelchair to bed. These patient handling tasks were studied using five manual techniques and three hoist-assisted techniques. The manual techniques involved one-person and two-person transfers. One manual technique involved a two-person lift of the patient under the arms; the others used a rocking and pulling action and included the use of assistive devices (a gait belt using a two-person transfer, a walking belt with handles using a one-person and a two-person transfer, and a patient handling sling with cutout areas to allow for a hand grip (Medesign) for a one-person transfer). The three mechanical hoists were Hoyer, Trans-Aid and Ambulift. Six female nursing students with prior patient transfer experience served both as nurses and as passive patients. Static biomechanical evaluation showed that pulling techniques, as compared to lifting the patient, required significantly lower hand forces and produced significantly lower erector spinae and compressive forces at the L5/S1 disc (P greater than or equal to 0.01). Shear force, trunk moments and the percentage of females who were capable of performing the transfers (based on static strength simulation) also favoured pulling methods. Perceived stress ratings for the shoulder, upper back, lower back and whole body were lower for pulling methods than those for lifting the patient (P less than or equal to 0.01). Patients found the pulling techniques, with the exception of when using the gait belt, felt more comfortable and more secure than the lifting method (P less than or equal to 0.01). However, a number of subjects believed that the patient handling sling (Medesign) and the walking belt with one person making the transfer would not work for those patients who could not bear weight and those who were heavy, contracted or combative. A walking belt with two persons was the preferred manual method. Two out of three hoists (Hoyer lift and Trans-Aid) were perceived by the nurses to be as physically stressful as manual methods. Patients found these two hoists to be more uncomfortable and felt less secure than with three of the five manual methods (one- and two-person walking belts and Medesign). Ambulift was found to be the least stressful, the most comfortable, and the most secure among all eight methods. Pulling techniques and hoists took significantly longer amounts of time to make the transfer than manually lifting the patient (P less than or equal to 0.01). The two-person walking belt using a pulling technique and Ambulift are recommended for transferring patients from bed to wheelchair and wheelchair to bed. A large-scale field study is needed to verify these recommendations.

Adult↗
PubMed1989

A controlled evaluation of arthritis education.

The benefits of patient education for those with chronic arthritis are well documented. Informed patients should practice self care more often, and may show reduced disability from their disease. An important question relates to maintenance of the knowledge and skills acquired in educational programmes. This prospective study evaluated an education programme for people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and osteoarthritis (OA). The intervention group participated in a comprehensively planned six session behaviourally based programme. A questionnaire was given to 100 patients and 95 matched but non-random controls before the programme, 1 month later, and at 3 and 12 months. The intervention group demonstrated improvements in knowledge, self-reported health behaviour and disability scores at 12 months, compared to the controls. No differences were reported in symptoms, compliance with therapy, pain perception, and locus of control.

Arthritis, Rheumatoid↗
PubMed1975

People and work: some contemporary issues.

In advanced industrial societies social, economic, and technological changes are accompanied by changing values and attitudes to work, symptomatic of what some see as the transition to a post-industrial era. As a result existing job definitions and traditional forms of organization are being challenged and attempts made to restructure work so that it becomes meaningful and rewarding in the fullest sense, to the individual, to the enterprise, and to society. These range from programmes of job enlargement and job enrichment, within the framework of existing technologies, to experiments in the design of organizations as a whole in which fewer constraints are accepted as given. They entail and require a multidisciplinary approach as well as awareness of and commitment to the underlying values. The possibilities and benefits of restructuring work in these various ways have been demonstrated sufficiently to encourage interest at governmental level as well as by employers and trade unions. There are, however, no simple prescriptions or principles of universal application. Knowledge is still tentative and partial but there is consensus that the search for new ways of dealing with the organization of work and the allocation of resources is of fundamental importance.

Authoritarianism↗
PubMed1988

Preventing adverse changes of work with age.

Many people who change their jobs in middle age have been found to move to less skilled and lower paid work. Two methods of preventing this are discussed. First, training by methods designed to take account of learning difficulties in those past normal apprenticeship age has, when sensitively applied, been successful in equipping people with new skills. Second, applying principles of ergonomics--"fitting the job to the worker"--could often remove key difficulties for older workers and thus prevent the need for moves resulting from failing capacity. This could also open up a wider range of potential jobs for those who have to move by reason of redundancy or technological change. It is emphasized that both the training and ergonomic approaches need to be based on, and can contribute significantly to, fundamental research on performance in relation to age.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Differential application of rate and delta check on selected clinical chemistry tests.

Through the present delta value check used in quality control programs is a powerful tool for detecting random errors in clinical chemistry analysis, it has some problems, such as missed true errors and delays in reporting time, because it also has the potential of showing erroneous positive results. Recently, new calculation methods for delta check with delta difference, delta percent change, rate difference, and rate percent change have been suggested by Lacher and Connelly (Clin Chem 34:1966-1970, 1988). Based on this new delta check method, we made the new criteria of which calculation method is applied to the clinical chemistry tests, i.e., the differential application of rate and delta check, and selectively applied the new method to 17 chemistry tests in order to solve the above problems. The applied criteria were the time dependence of the test item and the coefficient of variation of the absolute delta difference. Calcium, inorganic phosphorus, total protein, albumin, sodium, potassium, and chloride were classified as delta difference calculation method group; glucose and cholesterol as delta percent change group; creatinine, total and direct bilirubin as rate difference group; and urea nitrogen, uric acid, ALP, ALT, and AST as rate percent change group. With the previous criteria by Whitehurst et al. (Clin Chem 221:87-92) for 5045 specimens, the check-out rate was 47.8% (2,411 out of 5,045), and the positive predictive value was 0.41% (10 out of 2,411). For the new criteria, the check-out rate was 12.7% (621 out of 5,045), and the positive predictive value was 1.8% (nine out of 621).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Albumins↗
PubMed1992

The origin and evolution of activity analysis.

Practitioners of occupational therapy in the early 1900s selected therapeutic activities with an intuitive understanding of their characteristics and operations. The term activity analysis and the methodology for breaking down and examining tasks scientifically, however, were borrowed from industry during World War I. Methods originally used in time and motion study of jobs were applied to vocational retraining and therapeutic crafts; later, they were applied to a broader range of activities. The most systematic early use of activity analysis was in occupational therapy for physical dysfunction, particularly in military hospitals. Development of the concept was gradual until the 1970s, when the delineation of theoretical frames of reference for practice led to important changes. Today, activity analysis is viewed as a multifaceted process that involves both generic and specific components.

Ergonomics↗