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At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Time-frequency analysis of postural sway.

Postural sway during quiet stance has been used to characterize the postural control system. Most studies have used center of pressure (COP) measurements and have assumed stationarity, however, recent research has indicated that COP is not stationary. The purpose of this study is to introduce and demonstrate a nonstationary spectral estimation technique to examine the time-varying nature of postural sway. Data from two experiments were used to verify the usefulness of the spectral estimator for the analysis of COP. The first data set contains COP recorded from normal subjects swaying about their ankles in response to a metronome as it was gradually changed from 2 to 1 Hz. The time-frequency distribution reveals time-varying spectral changes corresponding to frequency changes made by the subjects. The second set consists of COP from normal subjects and vestibularly impaired patients standing quietly on a force plate with eyes closed for 100 s. The time-frequency distributions for the COP were estimated for both sets of data. The COP's appear to be nonstationary with the energies at a given frequency modulating through time.

Computer Simulation↗

On the tracking of rapid dynamic changes in seizure EEG.

Estimation of autospectra and coherence and phase spectra of seizure EEG, using the FFT technique, will cause "smearing" of the rapid dynamic changes which occur during the seizure. This is inherent to FFT spectral estimation, due to the averaging process which is necessary in order to get consistent spectral estimates. A different approach suggested in the present study is to carry out multivariate autoregressive modeling of the multichannel seizure EEG, combined with adaptive segmentation. In order to obtain good estimates in cases of short record length, the vectorial AR modeling was based on residual energy ratios. The method has been tested on multichannel seizure EEG recordings from rats with focal epilepsy, caused by intracerebral administration of Kainic acid, and in depth EEG recordings in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy.

Animals↗

Respiratory sinus arrhythmia and cardiovascular neural regulation in athletes.

Studies using spectral analysis of cardiovascular variability as a noninvasive means for assessing autonomic nervous system activity have provided controversial results in athletes. One reason is that a slow breathing rate--a common feature in athletes--affects spectral estimation because it causes the low-frequency (LF) and high-frequency (HF) components to overlap. Low-frequency power increases during sympathetic activation; high-frequency corresponds to respiratory sinus arrhythmia. In this study, to assess how controlled respiration influences autonomic nervous system activity, we determined the effect of controlled and uncontrolled breathing conditions on cardiovascular variability. Our aim was to identify a standard respiratory rate for spectral estimation of cardiovascular neural control in athletes. During electrocardiographic recordings, subjects lay supine and breathed at their spontaneous frequency and at rates of 15, 12, and 10 to 14 (random) breaths x min(-1). Uncontrolled and random breathing rates significantly altered spectral sympathetic indices; conversely, 15 and 12 breaths x min(-1) redistributed respiratory related power through the HF, thus yielding correct LF power estimation. None of the breathing conditions significantly changed mean heart rate, arterial blood pressure, or spectral total power of cardiovascular variability. In conclusion, when power spectral analysis is used for assessing autonomic activity in athletes, respiration should be standardized at 15 breaths x min(-1). Controlled respiration at this rate leaves autonomic nervous system activity unchanged.

Adolescent↗

Critical appraisal of indices for the assessment of baroreflex sensitivity.

The sequence technique and the spectral estimation of the alpha coefficient are currently employed for the assessment of "spontaneous" baroreflex sensitivity (BRS). The comparison of performance and effectiveness of these techniques is obtained by the analysis of systolic blood pressure (SBP) and pulse interval (PI) tracings recorded in conscious cats before and after baroreceptor denervation. Results indicate that (1) the average BRS estimates obtained by the sequence technique and by the alpha coefficient at the respiratory frequency are similar, (2) the alpha coefficients computed at the respiratory frequency tend to be higher than alpha coefficients estimated at 0.1 Hz, and (3) in spite of what is traditionally claimed, the PI-SBP coherence does not seem to represent a reliable parameter to enhance the specificity of the spectral estimate, because coherence values often remain above the 0.5 threshold also after baroreceptor denervation.

Animals↗

Is fatigue in patients with multiple sclerosis related to autonomic dysfunction?

Time-dependent frequency decomposition of fluctuations in cardiovascular signals (heart rate [HR], blood pressure, and blood flow) provides noninvasive and quantitative evaluation of autonomic activity during transient and steady-state conditions. This method was applied during a change of position from supine to standing in patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) who experienced unexplained fatigue and in age-matched control subjects. No difference in response to standing, as reflected in the time domain parameters (mean HR, mean blood pressure, and mean blood flow), was observed between patients with MS and control subjects. Moreover, no difference was observed in very-low-frequency and low-frequency (related to sympathetic activity) content of HR, blood pressure, blood flow, or high-frequency content of HR (related to parasympathetic activity). The only spectral estimates that showed a significant difference between groups were the ratio of low-frequency to high-frequency content of HR and low-frequency content of HR normalized to total power. Both these parameters provide an estimate of the sympathovagal balance. A significant increase in these two estimates on standing was observed in control subjects only, indicating possible impairment of the sympathovagal balance response to standing in patients with MS who experienced fatigue. The authors observed a significant age dependence between close age subgroups, which occurred in the MS group only and was observed in some of the investigated spectral estimates that reflect vagal activity. Therefore, the authors assumed that age-related reduction in vagal activity occurred earlier in patients with MS who experienced fatigue. This reduction could also explain the lack of increase in the sympathovagal balance on standing. To validate this enhanced age dependence, further investigation should be performed in a larger group of subjects with a wider age range.

Adult↗

Developments in cardiovascular ultrasound: Part 1: Signal processing and instrumentation.

One of the major contributions to the improvement of spectral Doppler and colour flow imaging instruments has been the development of advanced signal-processing techniques made possible by increasing computing power. Model-based or parametric spectral estimators, time-frequency transforms, station-arising algorithms and spectral width correction techniques have been investigated as possible improvements on the FFT-based estimators currently used for real-time spectral estimation of Doppler signals. In colour flow imaging some improvement on velocity estimation accuracy has been achieved by the use of new algorithms but at the expense of increased computational complexity compared with the conventional autocorrelation method. Polynomial filters have been demonstrated to have some advantages over IIR filters for stationary echo cancellation. Several methods of velocity vector estimation to overcome the problem of angle dependence have been studied, including 2D feature tracking, two and three beam approaches and the use of spectral width in addition to mean frequency. 3D data acquisition and display and Doppler power imaging have also been investigated. The use of harmonic imaging, using the second harmonic generated by encapsulated bubble contrast media, seems promising particularly for imaging slow flow. Parallel image data acquisition using non-sequential scanning or broad beam transmission, followed by simultaneous reception along a number of beams, has been studied to speed up 'real-time' imaging.

Blood Flow Velocity↗

Comparison of autoregression and fast Fourier transform techniques for power spectral analysis of heart period variability of persons with sudden cardiac arrest before and after therapy to increase heart period variability.

Clinical studies have used two types of analysis of the power spectral estimates of heart period variability: autoregressive and fast Fourier transform techniques. Controversy exists regarding which method is the most valid. The specific aims of this study are: (1) to describe the power spectra of heart period variability before and after an intervention designed to increase heart period variability in persons after sudden cardiac arrest; (2) to compare the integral of power spectral density between autoregressive and fast Fourier transform techniques within low and high-frequency bands; (3) to compare the magnitude of the spectral peak values determined by autoregressive and fast Fourier transform techniques approaches within low and high-frequency bands; and (4) to compare the aforementioned parameters using 4-minute, 1-hour, and 24-hour blocks of heart period data. Results indicated high correlations between spectral estimations by autoregressive and fast Fourier transform techniques using integrals or peak values within either the low or high-frequency ranges. The autoregressive technique demonstrated better resolution of sharp peaks than the fast Fourier transform technique, and makes a smoother, more interpretable curve. Lastly, people can cognitively change their heart rate variability.

Biofeedback, Psychology↗

Topographic cortical mapping of EEG sleep stages during daytime naps in normal subjects.

Computer-generated cortical maps of power spectral estimates derived from 16 leads were drawn based on daytime sleep recordings in four normal volunteers. These data were compiled from nine 10-s artifact-free, EEG epochs from awake, stages 1-4 and REM sleep in each volunteer. EEG leads were placed on the left hemisphere and midline according to the 10-20 system with four additional interpolated posterior locations. Magnitude spectral estimates with 1 Hz resolution and adjacent frequencies (delta 2-4, alpha 8-12, beta 13-18) were analyzed with two-way ANOVA (lead by sleep stage). Delta activity was relatively uniform and of low amplitude in awake, eyes-closed subjects, and REM. Delta power increased at the vertex in stage 1. With progressing, non-REM sleep stages, it increased in power and enlarged radially to the intraparietal sulcus posteriorly, and the superior frontal gyrus anteriorly. Comparison of maps with ear and a computed average reference yielded similar topographic patterns. Alpha activity was expectedly maximal occipitally in awake subjects, but surprisingly a frontal area appeared in slow wave sleep. Beta activity in awake subjects was low and maximal parietally; stages 1 and REM showed even lower and more uniform distribution. Stage 2 showed the greatest power, concentrated at the vertex, with stages 3 and 4 diminishing. These data suggest that sleep stages are not completely uniform electrophysiologically across the cortex. This opens the possibility for a new method for the diagnosis of sleep disorders and alternatives in sleep staging.

Adult↗

Study of myographic signals from sternomastoid muscle in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Analysis of the respiratory muscle activity is a promising technique for diagnosis of respiratory diseases, such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The sternomastoid muscle (SMM) was selected to study the activity of respiratory muscles due to its accessibility in order to define a noninvasive analysis. The aims of this work are two: analyze the relationship between the SMM function and pulmonary obstruction, and study the influence of spectral estimator on frequency parameters related with the muscle activity. For the first goal, we propose the analysis of vibromyographic and electromyographic signals from the SMM to study the muscle function during two ventilatory tests. Activity of SMM was found by means of several indexes: root-mean-square (rms) values, mean and median frequencies, and ratio between high and low-frequency components. For the second goal, spectral analysis was performed by means of nonparametric methods: Correlogram and Welch periodogram, and parametric methods: autoregressive (AR), moving average (MA), and ARMA models. It is deduced that these indexes show muscle activity and certain fatigue of the SMM, whose muscle function depends on the level of pulmonary obstruction, and they depend a lot of spectral estimator being the more suitable an AR model with high order.

Aged↗

Computer analysis of ENG spectral features from patients with congenital nystagmus.

Power spectral estimation from electromystagmographic recording of eye position is proposed as a simple digital processing method to quantify both the amplitude and the frequency features of eye motion in patients affected by the oculomotor disorder of congenital nystagmus (CN). Different basic wave shapes clinically identified and studied in the literature are shown to have slightly different power spectra, which can be used to characterize the CN disorder from nystagmus waveforms. This treatment, statistical in nature, does not depend strongly on the detailed structure of each recorded wave shape, thus emphasizing that accurate descriptive analysis of all patient's waveforms characteristics adds little to the comprehension of CN. We show that the power spectral estimation also represents a useful tool in modelling both the CN defect and the non-defective oculomotor system, and in assessing the effect of the surgical treatment of CN through the differences in the power spectra before and after surgery.

Electronystagmography↗

Linear systems analysis of cutaneous type I mechanoreceptors.

Linear system transfer functions of Type I mechanoreceptor domes in hairy skin were extracted for study. The system input, defined in units of indentation depth, was a punctate, 85 Hz bandlimited colored noise indenting stimulus. The system output was a dome's afferent AP event stream. After digitally low-pass filtering the AP event stream to prevent aliasing, transfer and coherence function estimates were generated from spectral and cross spectral estimates of the sampled input and output signals. Transfer function magnitudes (receptor sensitivity) beyond 10 Hz could be well fit by a fractional exponent (0.35 +/- 0.10) of frequency, indicating fractional order differentiation. Transfer function phases were near 120 degrees for frequencies less than 10 Hz and decreased progressively beyond 10 Hz. Coherence function estimates were low as a result of inherent nonlinearities, primarily rectification. Single dome results closely matched those reported by French and Kuster [6] for the tactile spine of the cockroach, suggesting that in terms of spectral sensitivity the receptors have similar transduction mechanisms. However, nonlinear systems modeling techniques are required for a more complete system characterization.

Action Potentials↗

Evaluation of aortic stenosis by spectral analysis of the murmur.

A relation between the peak transaortic pressure gradient and the frequency content of the murmur (r = 0.79) was demonstrated in a prospective "test" set of 50 patients with the clinical diagnosis of aortic stenosis. After heart sounds were recorded and digitized, three segments of the systolic murmur were isolated and analyzed by fast Fourier transform technique. An average frequency spectrum was quantitated by a previously described empiric spectral estimator. Clinical data and spectral ratio were correlated with the transaortic pressure gradient and aortic valve area was calculated from cardiac catheterization data. The best prediction of the transaortic pressure gradient was obtained when a 170 ms murmur segment was analyzed and when the predictive algorithm also included the aortic dimension (r = 0.87). The aortic valve area was poorly predicted (r = -0.48) unless estimates of blood flow and valvular calcification were included in the algorithm (r = 0.84). Further refinement of this technique may provide a non-invasive and clinically useful method for the estimation of aortic valve stenosis.

Adult↗

Quantitative estimation of spectral broadening for the diagnosis of carotid arterial disease: method and in vitro results.

For the quantitative assessment of carotid arterial disease using continuous wave Doppler ultrasound, the choice of an index to describe the degree of spectral broadening is important. It is shown that a spectral broadening index (SBI) given by 100(1 - fmean/fmax) and evaluated over a 25 msec period around peak systole is relatively insensitive to artifacts and has potential for achieving good clinical sensitivity. Furthermore, it can be implemented very simply on a microcomputer for on-line display. A description of a microcomputer based system, together with the results obtained using an in vitro flow model that closely approximates the carotid flow velocity waveform, are presented. Results relating the SBI to the degree of stenosis, recording site, and angle of insonation, are given. In addition, the results obtained with a commercial system that computes SBI based on the power spectrum, are presented for comparison.

Carotid Artery Diseases↗

Spectral phase estimates in the setting of multidirectional coupling.

In this paper we explore conventional techniques for estimating the time lag between two signals, using both time and frequency domain measures. We generate test signals to illustrate that in general, estimated temporal relationships between neural sites connected by multiple pathways are ambiguous except in special cases where multidirectional flow of information can be ruled out a priori. Signals are analyzed using the cross correlogram in the time domain, and coherence, phase and directed transfer function (DTF) in the frequency domain. In particular, we show how similar phase and DTF measures can be obtained from qualitatively different dynamical situations (uni and bi-directional flow), and argue that although the phase and DTF combined provide more directionality information than phase alone, one still needs to observe caution if one suspects multidirectional flow.

Models, Neurological↗

Isolation, size estimates, and spectral heterogeneity of an oligomeric series of light-harvesting 1 complexes from Rhodobacter sphaeroides.

A series of light-harvesting 1 (LH1) complexes was isolated by lithium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis at 4 degrees C from Rhodobacter sphaeroides M21, which lacks the peripheral light-harvesting 2 (LH2) complex. This ladder of LH1 bands was also demonstrated in the wild type, partially superimposed upon a smaller number of LH2 complexes. An assessment of electrophoretic mobility vs acrylamide concentration, in which the reaction center LM particle and annular LH1 and LH2 complexes were used as standards of known structure, indicated that the LH1 gel bands 2 to 10 represent regular oligomers of an alpha beta heterodimeric unit, that vary in size from (alpha beta)(2-3) to (alpha beta)(10-11). The isolated LH1 complexes exhibited oligomeric state dependent optical properties, characterized by red shifts in near-IR absorption and emission maxima at 77 K of approximately 6 nm as aggregate sizes increased from approximately 3 to 7-8 alpha beta-heterodimers, accompanied by shifts in highly polarized fluorescence from the blue to the red side of the absorption band. This has been explained by the oligomerization of heterodimers to form a curvilinear array of excitonically coupled chromophores, with the anisotropic long-wavelength component, designated originally as B896, corresponding to low energy excitonic transitions arising from interactions within inhomogeneous BChl clusters [Westerhuis et al. (1999) J. Phys. Chem. B 103, 7733-7742]. Differences in electrophoretic profiles of LH1 bands between strains M21 and M2192, an LH1-only strain that also lacks PufX, further suggested that the more rapidly migrating bands represent arced fragments of the curvilinear array of LH1 complexes thought to exist as a large closed circular structure only in the latter strain. The electrophoretic banding pattern also indicated that the LH1 complex may be located at the peripheries of dimeric intramembrane particle arrays seen in freeze-fracture replicas of tubular M21 membranes; the possible role for the PufX protein in the assembly of these structures is discussed.

Freeze Fracturing↗