Scientific reports
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Remote photoplethysmography (PPG) is an optical measurement technique with established applications in vital signs monitoring. Recently, the consensual understanding of blood volume variations (BVVs) as the origin of PPG signals was challenged, raising validity concerns about the remote SpO2 methodology. Recognizing the imperative for new opto-physiological evidence, this investigation supports the volumetric hypothesis with living skin experiments and Monte Carlo simulations of remote PPG-amplitude in visible light (VIS) and infrared (IR). ⋯ Our results indicate that remote PPG systems indeed probe arterial blood. Green wavelengths probe dermal arterioles while red-IR wavelengths also reach subcutaneous BVVs. Owing to stable penetration depths, the red-IR diagnostic window promotes the invariance of SpO2 measurements to skin non-homogeneities.
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Pain perception, trunk mobility and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) within all lumbar intervertebral discs (IVDs) were collected before and shortly after posterior-to-anterior (PA) mobilizations in 16 adults with acute low back pain. Using a pragmatic approach, a trained orthopaedic manual physical therapist applied PA mobilizations to the participants' spine, in accordance with his examination findings. ADC all was computed from diffusion maps as the mean of anterior (ADC ant ), middle (ADC mid ), and posterior (ADC post ) portions of the IVD. ⋯ No significant changes in ADC were observed at L5-S1 level. The reduction in pain and largest changes in ADC observed at the periphery of the hyperintense IVD region suggest that increased peripheral random motion of water molecules is implicated in the IVD nociceptive response modulation. Additionally, ADC changes were observed at remote IVD anatomical levels that did not coincide with the PA spinal mobilization application level.
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A self-consistent kinetic theory of Thomson scattering of an electromagnetic field by a non-uniform plasma is derived. We draw the readers' attention to the inconsistency in recent results on the Thomson scattering in inhomogeneous plasma, which leads to violation of the Fluctuation-Dissipation Theorem. We show, that not only the imaginary part, but also the derivatives of the real part of the dielectric susceptibility determine the amplitude and the width of the Thomson scattering spectral lines. ⋯ Kozlowski, et al. Sci. Rep. 6, 24283 (2016); https://doi.org/10.1038/srep24283 .
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Urinary kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1), neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL), and serum cystatin C (Cys C) are biomarkers of acute kidney injury (AKI). However, the efficacy of combining these indices to diagnose decompensated cirrhosis is unknown. This study involved 150 patients divided into AKI and non-AKI, and healthy individuals. ⋯ Urinary KIM-1 and NGAL and serum Cys C increased significantly and GFR decreased as Child-Pugh class of decompensated cirrhosis significantly increased (p < 0.05). SCr levels were significantly increased in Child-Pugh class C patients (p < 0.05). Urinary KIM-1, urinary NGAL, serum Cys C, and the combined detection factor, as screening indices, could aid in the early diagnosis of AKI secondary to decompensated cirrhosis.
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Postsynaptic density-95 (PSD-95) is a synaptic scaffolding protein that plays a crucial role in the development of neuropathic pain. However, the underlying mechanism remains unclear. To address the role of PSD-95 in N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor subtype 2B (NR2B) -mediated chronic pain, we investigated the relationship between PSD-95 activation and NR2B function in the spinal cord, by using a rat model of sciatic nerve chronic constriction injury (CCI). ⋯ Moreover, repeated treatment with Ro 25-6981 markedly attenuated the thermal hypersensitivity, and inhibited the CCI-induced upregulation of PSD-95 in the spinal dorsal horn. Furthermore, intrathecal injection of the PSD-95 inhibitor strikingly reversed the thermal and mechanical hyperalgesia. Our results suggest that blocking of NR2B signaling in the spinal cord could be used as a therapeutic candidate for treating neuropathic pain.