Objective: To systematically review and critically appraise the literature on measurement properties of cardiopulmonary exercise test protocols for measuring aerobic capacity, VO2max, in persons after stroke. Data sources: PubMed, Embase and Cinahl were searched from inception up to 15 June 2016. A total of 9 studies were identified reporting on 9 different cardiopulmonary exercise test protocols. Study selection: VO2max measured with cardiopulmonary exercise test and open spirometry was the construct of interest. The target population was adult persons after stroke. We included all studies that evaluated reliability, measurement error, criterion validity, content validity, hypothesis testing and/ or responsiveness of cardiopulmonary exercise test protocols. Data extraction: Two researchers independently screened the literature, assessed methodological quality using the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments checklist and extracted data on measurement properties of cardiopulmonary exercise test protocols. Data synthesis: Most studies reported on only one measurement property. Best-evidence synthesis was derived taking into account the methodological quality of the studies, the results and the consistency of the results. Conclusion: No judgement could be made on which protocol is “best” for measuring VO2max in persons after stroke due to lack of high-quality studies on the measurement properties of the cardiopulmonary exercise test.
Through a correspondence between two scholars, this paper explores and critiques various ways in which scholars working in ethnography and cultural analysis frame and construct their methodology and object of study. Through the close reading of theoretical accounts of methodology in ethnography and cultural analysis, we examine how these accounts construct the relationship between the scholar and her object of study.We read these scholarly practices as protocols, referring to the ways in which accounts of methodology may be understood as rules/guidelines by which scholars in these fields conduct research. Protocol etymologically refers to protos (first) and kolla (glue). Through the figure of the protocol, we delineate how scholars in ethnography and cultural analysis themselves become implicated in giving accounts of their research methodologies. Somatechnics presents a thoroughly multi-disciplinary scholarship on the body, providing a space for research that critically engages with the ethico-political implications of a wide range of practices and techniques. The term ‘somatechnics’ indicates an approach to corporeality which considers it as always already bound up with a variety of technologies, techniques and technics, thus enabling an examination of the lived experiences engendered within a given context, and the effects that technologies, technés and techniques have on embodiment, subjectivity and sociality.
MULTIFILE
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate if using surface neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) for paralyzed lower-limb muscles results in an increase in energy expenditure and if the number of activated muscles and duty cycle affect the potential increase.DESIGN: Cross-sectional study.RESULTS: Energy expenditure during all NMES protocols was significantly higher than the condition without NMES (1.2 ± 0.2 kcal/min), with the highest increase (+ 51%; +0.7 kcal/min, 95% CI: 0.3 - 1.2) for the protocol with more muscles activated and the duty cycle with a shorter rest period. A significant decrease in muscle contraction size during NMES was found with a longer stimulation time, more muscles activated or the duty cycle with a shorter rest period.CONCLUSION: Using NMES for paralyzed lower-limb muscles can significantly increase the energy expenditure compared to sitting without NMES with the highest increase for the protocol with more muscles activated and the duty cycle with a shorter rest period. Muscle fatigue occurred significantly with the more intense NMES protocols which might cause a lower energy expenditure in a longer protocol. Future studies should further optimize the NMES parameters and investigate the long-term effects of NMES on weight management in people with SCI.
An important line of research within the Center of Expertise HAN BioCentre is the development of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans as an animal testing replacement organism. In the context of this, us and our partners in the research line Elegant! (project number. 2014-01-07PRO) developed reliable test protocols, data analysis strategies and new technology, to determine the expected effects of exposure to specific substances using C. elegans. Two types of effects to be investigated were envisaged, namely: i) testing of possible toxicity of substances to humans; and ii) testing for potential health promotion of substances for humans. An important deliverable was to show that the observed effects in the nematode can indeed be translated into effects in humans. With regard to this aspect, partner Preventimed has conducted research in obesity patients during the past year into the effect of a specific cherry extract that was selected as promising on the basis of the study with C. elegans. This research is currently being completed and a scientific publication will have to be written. The Top Up grant is intended to support the publication of the findings from Elegant! and also to help design experimental protocols that enable students to become acquainted with alternative medical testing systems to reduce the use of laboratory animals during laboratory training.
Organ-on-a-chip technology holds great promise to revolutionize pharmaceutical drug discovery and development which nowadays is a tremendously expensive and inefficient process. It will enable faster, cheaper, physiologically relevant, and more reliable (standardized) assays for biomedical science and drug testing. In particular, it is anticipated that organ-on-a-chip technology can substantially replace animal drug testing with using the by far better models of true human cells. Despite this great potential and progress in the field, the technology still lacks standardized protocols and robust chip devices, which are absolutely needed for this technology to bring the abovementioned potential to fruition. Of particular interest is heart-on-a-chip for drug and cardiotoxicity screening. There is presently no preclinical test system predicting the most important features of cardiac safety accurately and cost-effectively. The main goal of this project is to fabricate standardized, robust generic heart-on-a-chip demonstrator devices that will be validated and further optimized to generate new physiologically relevant models to study cardiotoxicity in vitro. To achieve this goal various aspects will be considered, including (i) the search for alternative chip materials to replace PDMS, (ii) inner chip surface modification and treatment (chemistry and topology), (iii) achieving 2D/3D cardiomyocyte (long term) cell culture and cellular alignment within the chip device, (iv) the possibility of integrating in-line sensors in the devices and, finally, (v) the overall chip design. The achieved standardized heart-on-a-chip technology will be adopted by pharmaceutical industry. This proposed project offers a unique opportunity for the Netherlands, and Twente in particular, which has relevant expertise, potential, and future perspective in this field as it hosts world-leading companies pioneering various core aspects of the technology that are relevant for organs-on-chips, combined with two world-leading research institutes within the University of Twente.
The Ph.D. candidate will investigate the seismic response of connection details frequently used in traditional Dutch construction practice, specifically in the Groningen area. The research will focus on the experimental and numerical definition of the complete load-deflection behaviour of each considered connection; specifically, the tests will aim at identifying stiffness, strength, ductility, and dissipative behaviour of the connections. The experiments will be conducted on scaled or full-scale components that properly resemble the as-built and retrofitted as well connection details. The tests will involve monotonic and cyclic loading protocols to be able to define the load and displacement response of the connection to reversal loads, such as earthquakes, as well as the development of failure mechanisms under such loading cases. Possibly, also dynamic tests will be performed. Numerical models will be created and calibrated versus the experimental findings. Characteristic hysteretic behaviours of the examined connection types will be provided for the use of engineers and researchers.
