Successful Contact Research Articles

Implementation and Evaluation of a Team-Based Approach to Hospital Discharge Transition of Care.

Transitional care management (TCM) programs guide patients from hospital discharge to outpatient follow-up with the goal to decrease hospital readmissions and the cost of care. In 2017, the department of primary care internal medicine (PCIM) at Eastern Virginia Medical Group implemented TCM. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy and self-sustainability of this TCM program. The TCM team contacted patients upon discharge to schedule the follow-up appointment. We coded patient contact as (1) no successful phone-call contact, patient did not attend appointment; (2) successful phone-call contact, patient did not attend appointment; and (3) patient attended appointment. We collected patient demographics, readmissions, and visit costs using manual chart review and electronic health record (EHR) data extraction. We conducted χ 2 analysis, one-way analysis of variance, and unpaired t tests to assess associations between readmission rates or costs and TCM care. Initial analysis did not indicate significant associations between readmission rates and level of TCM care at 30 (χ 2=1.40, P=.50), 60 (χ 2=5.48, P=.06), or 90 (χ 2=4.23, P=.12) days or significant differences in patient charges at 30 (F[2,59]=2.85, P=.06), 60 (F[2,91]=2.00, P=.14), or 90 (F[2,126]=1.39, P=.25) days. Follow-up analysis indicated significant associations between readmission rates and any level of TCM care at 60 (χ 2=5.40, P=.02) and 90 (χ 2=4.21, P=.04) days, but not at 30 days (χ 2=1.39, P=.28). Our TCM program review suggests that the benefits of transitional care extend beyond 30 days by decreasing readmission rates at 60 and 90 days after hospital discharge.

Enhanced WSN Routing Protocol for Internet of Things to Process Multimedia Big Data

Due to the massive use of wireless Internet of Things (IoT), the advent of multimedia-big-data in recent decades poses numerous obstacles for successful contact with the virtual era. Mobile Adhoc Network-based IoT (MANET IoT) framework is increasingly common in this regard owing to its increased communication protocols and economic efficiency. MANET comprises arbitrary, battery-driven, roaming nodes that do not have architecture that can handle the traffic and control the IoT network. In MANET-IoT, energy usage and traffic management for the handling of MBD information are significant issues. For rapid and precise response, it is essential to route or forward information like the locations of happenings and defected in a disaster. However, it is difficult to transfer this information to the Wireless Sensor Network in disaster areas because the current networks are a disaster that has been removed. In these situations, the transmission of opportunistic knowledge may play a vital role. Current opportunistic protocols need large messages for the restoration of the cluster that leads to more energy consumption and packet loss. To overcome these issues, this work proposes the reliable, energy-efficient opportunistic protocol known as Opportunistic Density Clustering Routing Protocol. This method sends information opportunistically in emergencies and disasters through a density-clustering protocol. Results from simulations demonstrate that the designed protocol exceeds several well-known current routing mechanisms for network energy usage and dissemination of information.

B-PO03-188 RESOURCE IMPLICATIONS AND CLINICAL UTILITY OF A NOVEL CARDIAC IMPLANTABLE ELECTRONIC DEVICE (CIED)-DIGITAL CARE PATHWAY (TRIAGE-HF PLUS) TO REMOTELY MONITOR AND MANAGE A HEART FAILURE (HF) POPULATION

New approaches are needed for remote management of HF patients. To characterize clinical workflow, resource use and utility of the CIED-based ‘Triage-HF Plus’ (T-HF+) remote monitoring HF pathway. T-HF+ is a prospective, real-world evaluation of 415 patients with compatible Medtronic ICD or CRT devices. The Triage-HF algorithm (using up to 9 device-monitored parameters) classifies patients as low/medium/high risk of HF hospitalization in the next 30-days. In the T-HF+ pathway, a ‘high’ risk status prompts phone assessment for HF and non-HF acute issues. Remote guideline-directed interventions are based on clinical assessment. Over 15-months, 159 T-HF+ assessments were triggered for 102 patients, with successful contact in 148 (93%) cases (median time to contact 3 days, median call length 10 mins) (Table 1). 70/148 (47%) contacts identified an acute medical issue; worsening HF in 47 (32%), non-HF issue in 33 (22%). Interventions were performed in 44 (63% of acute issues). For those without acute medical issue (n=78), 13 (17%) reported recent hospitalization or intervention. 110/148 (77%) had 30-day follow-up telephone assessment (median call length 9 mins). 30-day risk status was medium/low in 81 8%. 24/30 (80%) cases with an acute medical issue and intervention indicated patient reported improvements at 30-days. In 5 cases the patient was hospitalized within 30 days of initial assessment. Average weekly workload to manage the population (n=415) was 96.4 minutes. T-HF+ pathway is a high-tech, low labour digital care pathway which promotes HF disease stability and symptom optimisation for patients with CIEDs.

Influence of Face Masks on the Use of Contact Lenses.

Background: The COVID-19 epidemic is largely controlled by the use of face masks. The use of a face mask has been indicated as a strong cause of dry eye, although it is not yet described in the literature. This study aims to compare the impact of the use of masks on the visual quality of patients. The symptoms in the human eye intensified during the pandemic versus the symptoms before the pandemic, in a Portuguese population. Methods: A fifteen-question questionnaire was conducted to find out what changes occurred in the use of soft contact lenses during the pandemic in relation to the use of masks. Statistical analysis was performed with SPSS 27.0 software (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA). Results: The use of contact lenses decreased compared with before the pandemic (p < 0.001). The number of hours of wear decreased significantly compared with before the pandemic (p < 0.001). The sensation of dry eyes was found to be worse in those using monthly replacement contact lenses (p = 0.034), and the need to remove contact lenses was more frequent in women (p = 0.026) after using a mask. Conclusions: Mask use increases dry eye symptoms in contact lens wearers, negatively impacting visual quality.

The relationship of pre-corneal to pre-contact lens non-invasive tear breakup time.

PurposeTo examine the relationship between pre-corneal and pre-contact lens tear film stability (TFS), and to determine whether pre-corneal TFS is a reliable predictor of subsequent pre-lens TFS after a contact lens is placed on the eye.Methods667 records met inclusion criteria and were extracted from a soft contact lens multi-study database. Multivariable linear mixed effects models were fit to examine the association between pre-corneal and pre-lens TFS, adjusting for potential confounders and accounting for repeated measures. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis was employed to assess the predictive performance of pre-corneal TFS for subsequent pre-lens TFS. TFS was quantified for this analysis as the non-invasive tear breakup time (NITBUT).ResultsPre-corneal NITBUT was significantly related to the pre-lens NITBUT at both 10 min (p<0.001) and 2–6 hrs (p<0.001) post-lens insertion. However, the sensitivities of pre-corneal NITBUT for predicting symptom-associated thresholds of pre-lens NITBUT ranged from 50–65%, and specificities ranged from 57–72%, suggesting poor-to-moderate diagnostic performance.ConclusionsDespite the association of pre-corneal and pre-lens TFS, the inherent lability and sensitivity to environmental exposures of the tear film introduce significant variability into NITBUT measurements. Using pre-corneal NITBUT to identify likely successful contact lens candidates prior to fitting is thus not sufficiently accurate to be relied upon in the clinical setting.

Considerations for the Design and Implementation of COVID-19 Contact Tracing Apps: Scoping Review.

BackgroundGiven the magnitude and speed of SARS-CoV-2 transmission, achieving timely and effective manual contact tracing has been a challenging task. Early in the pandemic, contact tracing apps generated substantial enthusiasm due to their potential for automating tracing and reducing transmission rates while enabling targeted confinement strategies. However, although surveys demonstrate public interest in using such apps, their actual uptake remains limited. Their social acceptability is challenged by issues around privacy, fairness, and effectiveness, among other concerns.ObjectiveThis study aims to examine the extent to which design and implementation considerations for contact tracing apps are detailed in the available literature, focusing on aspects related to participatory and responsible eHealth innovation, and synthesize recommendations that support the development of successful COVID-19 contact tracing apps and related eHealth technologies.MethodsSearches were performed on five databases, and articles were selected based on eligibility criteria. Papers pertaining to the design, implementation, or acceptability of contact tracing apps were included. Articles published since 2019, written in English or French, and for which the full articles were available were considered eligible for analysis. To assess the scope of the knowledge found in the current literature, we used three complementary frameworks: (1) the Holistic Framework to Improve the Uptake and Impact of eHealth Technologies, (2) the Montreal model, and (3) the Responsible Innovation in Health Assessment Tool.ResultsA total of 63 articles qualified for the final analysis. Less than half of the selected articles cited the need for a participatory process (n=25, 40%), which nonetheless was the most frequently referenced item of the Framework to Improve the Uptake and Impact of eHealth Technologies. Regarding the Montreal model, stakeholder consultation was the most frequently described level of engagement in the development of contact tracing apps (n=24, 38%), while collaboration and partnership were cited the least (n=2, 3%). As for the Responsible Innovation in Health framework, all the articles (n=63, 100%) addressed population health, whereas only 2% (n=1) covered environmental considerations.ConclusionsMost studies lacked fundamental aspects of eHealth development and implementation. Our results demonstrate that stakeholders of COVID-19 contact tracing apps lack important information to be able to critically appraise this eHealth innovation. This may have contributed to the modest uptake of contact tracing apps worldwide. We make evidence-informed recommendations regarding data management, communication, stakeholder engagement, user experience, and implementation strategies for the successful and responsible development of contact tracing apps.

Best Practice Guidance for Digital Contact Tracing Apps: A Cross-disciplinary Review of the Literature.

BackgroundDigital contact tracing apps have the potential to augment contact tracing systems and disrupt COVID-19 transmission by rapidly identifying secondary cases prior to the onset of infectiousness and linking them into a system of quarantine, testing, and health care worker case management. The international experience of digital contact tracing apps during the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrates how challenging their design and deployment are.ObjectiveThis study aims to derive and summarize best practice guidance for the design of the ideal digital contact tracing app.MethodsA collaborative cross-disciplinary approach was used to derive best practice guidance for designing the ideal digital contact tracing app. A search of the indexed and gray literature was conducted to identify articles describing or evaluating digital contact tracing apps. MEDLINE was searched using a combination of free-text terms and Medical Subject Headings search terms. Gray literature sources searched were the World Health Organization Institutional Repository for Information Sharing, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control publications library, and Google, including the websites of many health protection authorities. Articles that were acceptable for inclusion in this evidence synthesis were peer-reviewed publications, cohort studies, randomized trials, modeling studies, technical reports, white papers, and media reports related to digital contact tracing.ResultsEthical, user experience, privacy and data protection, technical, clinical and societal, and evaluation considerations were identified from the literature. The ideal digital contact tracing app should be voluntary and should be equitably available and accessible. User engagement could be enhanced by small financial incentives, enabling users to tailor aspects of the app to their particular needs and integrating digital contact tracing apps into the wider public health information campaign. Adherence to the principles of good data protection and privacy by design is important to convince target populations to download and use digital contact tracing apps. Bluetooth Low Energy is recommended for a digital contact tracing app's contact event detection, but combining it with ultrasound technology may improve a digital contact tracing app's accuracy. A decentralized privacy-preserving protocol should be followed to enable digital contact tracing app users to exchange and record temporary contact numbers during contact events. The ideal digital contact tracing app should define and risk-stratify contact events according to proximity, duration of contact, and the infectiousness of the case at the time of contact. Evaluating digital contact tracing apps requires data to quantify app downloads, use among COVID-19 cases, successful contact alert generation, contact alert receivers, contact alert receivers that adhere to quarantine and testing recommendations, and the number of contact alert receivers who subsequently are tested positive for COVID-19. The outcomes of digital contact tracing apps' evaluations should be openly reported to allow for the wider public to review the evaluation of the app.ConclusionsIn conclusion, key considerations and best practice guidance for the design of the ideal digital contact tracing app were derived from the literature.

Successful contact tracing systems for COVID-19 rely on effective quarantine and isolation.

Models of contact tracing often over-simplify the effects of quarantine and isolation on disease transmission. We develop a model that allows us to investigate the importance of these factors in reducing the effective reproduction number. We show that the reduction in onward transmission during quarantine and isolation has a bigger effect than tracing coverage on the reproduction number. We also show that intuitively reasonable contact tracing performance indicators, such as the proportion of contacts quarantined before symptom onset, are often not well correlated with the reproduction number. We conclude that provision of support systems to enable people to quarantine and isolate effectively is crucial to the success of contact tracing.

Telephone consultation service in orthopedics during COVID-19 pandemic

Background and aimThe current COVID-19 pandemic scenario has driven surgical departments to a transformation.The worldwide spread of the disease has led to a public health quarantine where health care professionals are at high risk of infection. In this context, telemedicine has been promoted and scaled up to reduce the risk of transmission. This study aims to demonstrate that a combined framework based on telematics and in-person clinical encounter not only ensures medical care but the safety of healthcare professionals and patients. Material and methodDescriptive observational study on the follow-up of patients during the COVID19 Pandemic, combining telephone and traditional. ResultsA total of 5031 telephone calls were made, differentiating between medical referrals, specialised primary care visits, and outpatient consultation.They were classified as successful, required an in-person visit, or no successful telephone contact. Furthermore, we divided them into 2 groups: resolved and unresolved.53% of all telematic visits were successful. ConclusionsTelematic medical systems are a feasible option in a orthopedics department and an interesting resource to preserve once the pandemic is resolved. Future lines of research should be opened to improve system success, analyze its cost-effectiveness ratio, and correct any legal conflicts that may exist.

Thermal modes of operation of power-current contact of electric transport during conduct of bench tests

Purpose. Analysis of the results of bench tests of sliding electrical contacts of electric vehicles, in order to determine the thermal regime of the sliding contact.&#x0D; Methodology. The initial data were obtained during field experiments on a specialized stand in the laboratory, which were carried out to determine the wear of the contact wire inserts of different types for pantographs of electro-rolling stock of railways. To determine the contact wire temperature at the place of sliding contact, a non-destructive non-contact method of control using a thermal imager was used.&#x0D; Findings. During the experimental part of the research, the thermal imaging photographs were obtained, they recorded the temperatures at the place of sliding contact between the insert of the pantograph of the electric rolling stock and the contact wire installed on the test disk. These temperature values were recorded with a certain time interval, which allowed to build the dependences of changes in thermal regime over time, to determine the heating time constant of the "insert-contact wire" of the test bench and to obtain the final temperature value at the end of tests. Accepting the insert sample in which the minimum temperature in the area of sliding contact is as a reference, it becomes possible by the value of the temperature of the contact wire in the area of sliding contact to predict the final test result of other types of pads.&#x0D; Originality. Indicators of temperature modes of sliding contact of electric vehicles during bench tests are obtained for the first time, the proposed relative temperature indicator allows to predict the results of bench tests of qualitative indicators of sliding contact of electric vehicles..&#x0D; Practical value. Bench tests of inserts of current collectors of electric vehicles are a long procedure, the normative indicator of the number of passes of the current collector on the stand is equal to 500 thousand passes, which requires significant expenditure of time, energy, human resources and others. The indicators proposed according to the test results, namely the heating time constant and the relative temperature index, allow to carry out two-stage tests. At the first stage, with a duration of 10 thousand revolutions of the test bench disk, the proposed indicators are determined and compared with the corresponding reference, in case of their compliance it becomes possible to predict the final test result as successful (contact wire wear less than normal) or unsuccessful. In the latter case, the need for the second stage of testing up to 500 thousand revolutions is questionable, because the end result will be negative, and the significant resources will be involved in the test, and therefore these tests are impractical.

Patient – practitioner communication and contact lens compliance during a prolonged COVID-19 lockdown

PurposeOcular manifestations and ocular transmission of SARS-CoV-2 in contact lens (CL) wearers may be fostered by non-compliance with care and maintenance instructions which, in turn, may be aggravated by inadequate patient-practitioner communication. The purpose of this research was to determine CL use, compliance and patient-practitioner communication during a 3-month long COVID-19 lockdown in Spain. MethodsAn online survey (developed using Google Forms) retrospectively evaluated CL compliance during the 3-month lockdown (responses captured between 15th July and 10th August, 2020), with particular emphasis on patient-practitioner communication, handwashing practices and CL case hygiene and replacement. ResultsA total of 247 responses were collected and analysed. Most participants used monthly replacement soft lenses (64.8 %) and multipurpose solutions (75.7 %), with 86.6 % of them owning a storage case for their lenses. During lockdown, a significant percentage of participants ceased lens wear (28.4 %) or reduced wearing time (49.2 %). Regarding patient-practitioner communication, 54.3 % of respondents received specific instructions, mostly about handwashing (93.3 %) and storage case hygiene (48.5 %). The most frequent non-compliant practices were inadequate handwashing (36.4 %), and overextending monthly or two-weekly replacement lenses (35.2 %). Many respondents never cleaned (23.0 %) nor replaced (16.3 %) their storage case, and 27.8 % of them reported not having been informed about case hygiene by their practitioners. ConclusionContact lens compliance, particularly in terms of handwashing and storage case hygiene, was poor during a prolonged COVID-19 lockdown, thus stressing the need to foster patient-practitioner communication strategies to curtail the possibility of ocular transmission and the risk of virus tropism.

The undervalued set piece: Analysis of soccer throw-ins during the English Premier League 2018–2019 season

Set pieces in soccer (i.e., free kicks and corners) have been examined in detail and are a common focus for coaches during training and performance preparation. However, limited evidence is available on the impact of throw-ins on soccer performance and if coaches should dedicate time in training towards this specific set piece. Therefore, this research aimed to firstly examine if throw-in performance is linked with soccer performance, and secondly the effect throw-in direction and length has on first contact success rate, possession retention, mean time in possession and shot creation. 16,154 throw-ins from 380 English Premier League matches during the 2018–2019 season were analysed. Higher final league position was correlated to increased throw-in first contact success and possession retention. 83% of throw-in’s resulted in a successful first contact, 54% resulted in possession being retained and 8.8% of throw-ins led to a shot at goal from the possession achieved after a successful first contact. Throw-in’s which went backwards or laterally in direction resulted in increased first contact success, retaining of possession, and shot creation. The least efficient throw-in was forwards and long, which resulted in both reduced first contact success and possession retention. Findings highlight, that throwing the ball laterally or backwards should be a focus for coaches and players during attacking training. In contrast, a team’s defensive strategy should reduce the opportunities to throw backwards or laterally with a higher press and look to force a long forward throw-in, therefore, increasing the likelihood of winning possession and counter attacking.

Non-invasive tear break-up time on six types of daily disposable contact lenses after 10 hours of wear

Purpose: Maintaining a persistent tear film over the surface of a contact lens is an important factor for successful contact lens wear. The chemistry of the lens material can play an important role in stabilizing tears. This study aims to evaluate the Non-invasive tear break up time (NIBUT) of 6 types of daily disposable contact lenses commonly available in the market after 10 h of wear.

Implementation of podiatry telephone appointments for people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases

BackgroundFoot health problems are common in the general population, and particularly so in people with rheumatic and musculoskeletal disorders (RMD). Several clinical guidelines state that people with RMDs should have access to foot health services, although service capacity is often limited. The current COVID-19 pandemic has increased the need for alternative ways to provide patient care. The aim of this clinical audit was to review a newly implemented telephone follow-up appointment service conducted within the Rheumatology Podiatry Department in Leeds, UK.MethodsFifty-eight patients attending the Rheumatology Podiatry Department at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust were contacted by telephone approximately 6–8 weeks following initial intervention. During the telephone consultation, all patients were asked pre-defined questions relating to their symptoms, intervention efficacy, the need for further appointments and their preference for the type of consultation. To assess the cost of the telephone consultation the number of attempts needed in order to make successful contact, the duration of the call and the number of telephone follow-up appointments completed in a working day were also recorded.ResultsTwenty-five patients (43%) were successfully contacted within the 6–8 weeks stipulated time frame and were included in the analysis. Of the 25 contacted, twelve (48%) patients were successfully contacted on the first attempt. Ten (40%) were successfully contacted on the second attempt. The remaining three patients (12%) required 3 or more attempts to make successful contact. Telephone consultations were estimated not to last longer than 10 min, including notes screening and documentation. Eleven patients (44%) reported an improvement in their symptoms, thirteen (52%) reported no change and one patient (4%) reported their symptoms to be worse.ConclusionTelephone follow-up consultations may be a potentially cost-effective alternative to face-to-face appointments when implemented in a Rheumatology Podiatry Department, and provide an alternative way of providing care, especially when capacity for face-to-face contact is limited. The potential cost saving and efficiency benefits of this service are likely to be enhanced when telephone consultations are pre-arranged with patients.

Telemonitoring of Children with COVID-19: Experience Report of the First 100 Cases.

Introduction:The first case of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Brazil was diagnosed in February 2020. On March 20, the Ministry of Health issued Ordinance no. 467, regulating the use of telemedicine during the pandemic period. One of the various modalities of telemedicine is telemonitoring.Objective:To report our experience with telemonitoring and evaluate its applicability in the follow-up of the first 100 children who received the diagnosis of COVID-19 after visiting the emergency department of Sabará Hospital Infantil (“Hospital Sabará”) and who had no indications for hospitalization.Methods:The care records of the children were retrospectively analyzed, and telephone contact with the families of patients who did not complete the proposed telemonitoring protocol was initiated.Results:The average age of the children was 5.5 years, and a slight male predominance (54/100) was observed. Comorbidities were present in 24/100. The source of infection was family members living in the same household in 88/100 and other sources in 12/100. In the first telemonitoring, 44% of the evaluated patients were asymptomatic. In the second telemonitoring, 81% of the patients were asymptomatic. Telemonitoring was completed by 70% of the children. A total of 14 children returned to the emergency department, 11 of whom spontaneously (2/11 were admitted) and 3 under the indication of telemedicine (3/3 were admitted).Conclusions:Telemonitoring proved to be a clinically valuable resource in the follow-up of children with COVID-19, as it allowed continuity of care and identified patients with indications to return to the emergency department of Hospital Sabará and for hospitalization, thus avoiding unnecessary emergency department visits.

Microelectrode Array With Integrated Pneumatic Channels for Dynamic Control of Electrode Position in Retinal Implants.

Retinal prostheses are biomedical devices that directly utilize electrical stimulation to create an artificial vision to help patients with retinal diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa. A major challenge in the microelectrode array (MEA) design for retinal prosthesis is to have a close topographical fit on the retinal surface. The local retinal topography can cause the electrodes in certain areas to have gaps up to several hundred micrometers from the retinal surface, resulting in impaired, or totally lost electrode functions in specific areas of the MEA. In this manuscript, an MEA with dynamically controlled electrode positions was proposed to reduce the electrode-retina distance and eliminate areas with poor contact after implantation. The MEA prototype had a polydimethylsiloxane and polyimide hybrid flexible substrate with gold interconnect lines and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate electrodes. Ring shaped counter electrodes were placed around the main electrodes to measure the distance between the electrode and the model retinal surface in real time. The results showed that this MEA design could reduce electrode-retina distance up to [Formula: see text] with 200 kPa pressure. Meanwhile, the impedance between the main and counter electrodes increased with smaller electrode-model retinal surface distance. Thus, the change of electrode-counter electrode impedance could be used to measure the separation gap and to confirm successful electrode contact without the need of optical coherence tomography scan. The amplitude of the stimulation signal on the model retinal surface with originally poor contact could be significantly improved after pressure was applied to reduce the gap.

Facile fabrication and characterization of aliphatic polyketone (PK) micro/nano fiber membranes via electrospinning and a post treatment process.

In this article, polyketone (PK) micro/nano fiber membranes were successfully fabricated by electrospinning and a post treatment process and the membrane characteristics were investigated. The morphology of the fiber membranes showed that ambient humidity during electrospinning changed the roughness of the fiber surface and the addition of NaCl decreased the fiber diameter. In particular, the changes in surface roughness was a very rare and novel discovery. The effect of this discovery on membrane properties was also analyzed. Additionally, the nanofiber membrane was modified by in situ surface reduction. FT-IR spectroscopy indicated the successful reduction modification and water contact angle results proved the improved wetting ability by this modification process. DSC and TGA analysis showed that the micro/nano fiber membranes possessed a high melting point and thermal decomposition temperature. Mechanical tests showed that as fiber membranes, PK micro/nano fiber membranes had relatively high mechanical strength, furthermore the mechanical strength can be easily enhanced by controlling the fiber morphology. From these results, it was concluded that the PK micro/nano fiber membranes could be a promising candidate for many applications such as organic solvent-resistant membranes, high-safety battery separators, oil–water separation, etc.

Stereophotogrammetry measurement of kinematic target effect as speed accuracy benchmark indicator for kicking performance in martial arts

Purpose: The development of a motion capture system leads to fast and accessible ways of precise testing of athletes and their motor abilities. The striking performance in martial arts and combat sports requires measuring velocity in the context of successful contact with the target. The aim of this study was to present the novel kinematic target effect coefficient and its possible use as a speed accuracy benchmark of performance based on the example of taekwon-do roundhouse and frontal kicks. Methods: The stereophotogrammetry motion capture setup consists of 10 infrared cameras (NIR Vicon MX-T40). Analysis includes 180 kicks (roundhouse and frontal kicks) performed by 15 adult participants on a master level in taekwon-do. The kinematic target effect comparison includes two targets – a training shield and a table tennis ball hanging from the ceiling. Markers were placed on the lower extremities of participants. Spatial-temporal variables were registered for both kicking legs, techniques, and target types. Results: Both roundhouse and frontal kicks revealed target and marker dependent differences during its execution. The kinematic target effect coefficient values differ for the specific marker and kick type. Conclusion: The wireless motion capture systems could be helpful in the training process and an athlete’s evaluation before sports competitions.

Clinical Performance of a Novel Daily Disposable Soft Contact Lens

Background and Objective: Verofilcon A (PRECISION1®; Alcon) silicone hydrogel daily disposable contact lenses were designed to address clinical issues associated with new wearer discontinuation, including vision quality, sustained comfort, and ease of handling. The present study assessed the objective and subjective performance of verofilcon A contact lenses in subjects needing optical correction for refractive ametropia.&#x0D; Material and Methods: Subjects aged 18 years and older with non-diseased eyes, a history of successful soft contact lens wear for distance correction in both eyes during the previous 3 months, and a best spectacle-corrected visual acuity of 20/25 or better with a manifest cylinder of ≤ 0.75 diopters in each eye were recruited. The primary endpoint was distance visual acuity. Secondary endpoints included subjective ratings of overall vision, comfort, and handling, and safety endpoints included adverse events and biomicroscopy/slit lamp examination findings.&#x0D; Results: This study recruited 70 subjects (140 eyes), aged 20–48 years, who were predominantly white (93%), non-Hispanic/Latino (94%), and female (73%); one subject discontinued due to a change in residence. Of the 140 eyes, 132 (94.3%) had 20/20 or better vision with their habitual contact lenses. Similarly, of the 138 eyes that completed the study, 136 (98.6%) had 20/20 or better vision at dispensation of verofilcon A lenses and 132 (95.7%) had 20/20 or better vision at 3 months. Mean ± SD subjective ratings of overall vision, overall comfort, and overall handling, each on a 10-point scale, were 9.4 ± 0.8, 9.4 ± 0.8, and 9.2 ± 1.3, respectively, at lens dispensing, and 9.4 ± 0.9, 9.5 ± 0.8, and 9.2 ± 1.0, respectively, at 3 months. Mean ± SD daily wear times at 1 week and 3 months were 14.71 ± 1.85 and 15.05 ± 1.27 hours, respectively, with 68.1% at 1 week and 73.9% at 3 months wearing verofilcon A lenses for 14–18 hours per day. None of the subjects experienced a serious adverse event or discontinued lens wear, with biomicroscopy/slit lamp examination showing no evidence of corneal edema or chemosis.&#x0D; Conclusion: Subjects wearing verofilcon A lenses had visual acuity similar to that when wearing their habitual lens. Verofilcon A lenses were highly rated for vision quality, comfort, and handling. Verofilcon A lenses may be an option for subjects with refractive ametropia who desire lenses that can be worn for &gt;14 hours per day and are easy to handle.

Consultoría telefónica en COT durante la pandemia por COVID-19. ¿Ha venido para quedarse?

Background and aimThe current COVID-19 pandemic scenario has driven surgical departments to a transformation.The worldwide spread of the disease has led to a public health quarantine where health care professionals are at high risk of infection. In this context, telemedicine has been promoted and scaled up to reduce the risk of transmission. This study aims to demonstrate that a combined framework based on telematics and in-person clinical encounter not only ensures medical care but the safety of healthcare professionals and patients. Material and methodDescriptive observational study on the follow-up of patients during the COVID19 Pandemic, combining telephone and traditional. ResultsA total of 5031 telephone calls were made, differentiating between medical referrals, specialized primary care visits, and outpatient consultation.They were classified as successful, required an in-person visit, or no successful telephone contact. Furthermore, we divided them into 2 groups: resolved and unresolved.53% of all telematic visits were successful. ConclusionsTelematic medical systems are a feasible option in a orthopedics department and an interesting resource to preserve once the pandemic is resolved. Future lines of research should be opened to improve system success, analyze its cost-effectiveness ratio, and correct any legal conflicts that may exist.