INTRODUÇÃO: O declínio da capacidade cognitiva (DCC) decorre dos processos fisiológicos do envelhecimento normal ou de um estágio de transição para as demências. A demência é uma síndrome clínica que se relaciona às perdas neuronais e danos à estrutura cerebral, levando o indivíduo a apresentar alterações cognitivas e funcionais que interferem nas atividades diárias. OBJETIVO: Analisar o declínio da cognição e o seu impacto nas habilidades funcionais em idosos institucionalizados e não institucionalizados. MATERIAIS E MÉTODOS: Avaliaram-se dois grupos, de ambos os sexos e idade entre 55 a 86 anos, divididos em indivíduos institucionalizados e não institucionalizados. No grupo não institucionalizado foram avaliados 31 idosos; no grupo dos indivíduos institucionalizados, 22. Primeiro houve a caracterização do idoso, seguida pela aplicação do Mini Exame de Estado Mental (MEEM), Escala Geriátrica de Depressão de Yesavage e a Escala de Lawton. Esses dados foram codificados e comparados entre si permitindo verificar o índice de correlação de Pearson. RESULTADOS: Entre os indivíduos institucionalizados obtiveram-se as seguintes médias: idade 72,33 ± 10,44 anos, MEEM 11,17 ± 5,8, escala de Lawton 8,11 ± 2,99 e escala de Yesavage 4,06 ± 2,90. Entre os indivíduos não institucionalizados obtiveram-se as seguintes médias: idade 62,78 ± 9,01 anos, MEEM 26,41 ± 3,25, escala de Lawton 15,43 ± 1,33 e escala de Yesavage 2,02 ± 2,83. Ao comparar os dois grupos, todas as escalas de avaliação obtiveram valores significativos (p < 0,05), exceto entre MEEM e Yesavage para idosos institucionalizados. CONCLUSÃO: Os dados sugerem uma influência do estado cognitivo na depressão e nas atividades funcionais de vida diária.

Effects of therapeutic ultrasound on the mechanical properties of skeletal muscles after contusion Efeitos do ultra-som terapêutico nas propriedades mecânicas do músculo esquelético após contusão Matheus JPC, Oliveira FB, Gomide LB, Milani JGPO, Volpon JB, Shimano AC AbstractBackground: Therapeutic ultrasound is a resource commonly applied to speed up tissue repair in muscle injuries. The absorption of the ultrasound waves is determined by their frequency and intensity. For a given intensity, the depth reached by 1MHz is greater than the depth reached by 3MHz. Objective: To analyze the mechanical properties of muscles subjected to acute impact injury treated with therapeutic ultrasound at the frequencies of 1 and 3MHz. Methods: Forty female Wistar rats (200.1±17.8g) were used, divided into four groups: (1) control; (2) muscle injury without treatment; (3) muscle injury treated with therapeutic ultrasound at the frequency of 1MHz (0.5W/cm 2 ); and (4) muscle injury treated with therapeutic ultrasound at the frequency of 3MHz (0.5W/cm 2 ). The injury was produced in the gastrocnemius muscle by means of an impact mechanism. The treatment consisted of a single five-minute session per day, for six consecutive days. The muscles were subjected to mechanical traction tests in a universal test machine. Results: Means and standard deviations for the mechanical properties of the injured groups that received therapeutic ultrasound were significantly greater than those of the injured group without treatment (p<0.05). The property of stiffness should be highlighted: the application of therapeutic ultrasound increased muscle stiffness by approximately 38%. Conclusions: Therapeutic ultrasound increased the mechanical properties of the injured muscles, and brought them to a level close to the control group. However, no significant difference in mechanical properties was observed between the groups treated with ultrasound at the frequencies of 1MHz and 3MHz.Key words: therapeutic ultrasonic; muscle injury; biomechanical properties. ResumoContextualização: O ultra-som terapêutico (UST) é um recurso comumente aplicado na aceleração do reparo tecidual de lesões musculares.A absorção das ondas ultra-sônicas é determinada pela freqüência e pela intensidade, sendo que, em uma mesma intensidade, a profundidade atingida por 1MHz é maior quando comparada a 3MHz. Objetivo: Analisar o comportamento das propriedades mecânicas de músculos submetidos à lesão aguda por impacto e tratados com UST, utilizando as freqüências de 1 e 3MHz. Materiais e métodos:Foram utilizadas 40 ratas Wistar (200,1±17,8g), divididas em quatro grupos: (1) controle; (2) lesão muscular sem tratamento; (3) lesão muscular tratada com UST de freqüência 1MHz (0,5W/cm 2 ) e (4) lesão muscular tratada com UST de freqüência 3MHz (0,5W/cm 2 ). A lesão foi provocada no músculo gastrocnêmio por mecanismo de impacto. O tratamento foi de cinco minutos diários durante seis dias consecutivos. Os músculos foram submetidos a ensaios mecânicos de tração em uma máquina universal de ensa...

Introdução. A assimetria e a dificuldade em transferir o peso para o lado afetado interferem na capacidade de manter o controle postural em indivíduos pós-AVC. Objetivo. Averiguar a simetria e transferência de peso e sua correlação com o equilíbrio, marcha e função. Método. foram avaliados 30 pacientes com AVC, com média de idade de 58,91(±9,51) anos. Foram aplicadas as escalas Equilíbrio de Berg (EEB), Índice de Barthel (IB), Avaliação da Simetria e Transferência de Peso (ASTP) e Análise da Marcha Anormal Modificada e Adaptada (EAMA-M-A). Esses dados foram codificados e comparados entre si permitindo verificar o índice de correlação de Pearson. Resultados. Pode-se verificar uma diminuição de todas as habilidades avaliadas (equilíbrio, atividades funcionais e postura e transferência de peso). Ao correlacionar esses dados, houve uma correlação positiva (r:0,76, p:0,04) entre a ASTP e IB, uma correlação positiva (r:0,71, p:0,043) entre ASTP e EEB e uma correlação negativa (r:-0,68, p:0,04) entre ASTP e EAMA-MA. Conclusão. Os indivíduos hemiparéticos após AVC apresentaram menor simetria e dificuldade nas transferências de peso na postura em pé, menor desempenho no equilíbrio, marcha e função motora e esses resultados podem estar correlacionados, uma vez que os dados se mostraram pareados.

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This paper presents a case study of two selected beam hardening correction methods and their effects on dimensional measurements of multi-material objects. The methods under test are empirical cupping correction (ECC) and empirical dual energy calibration (EDEC). These methods were originally developed for medical applications and their potential for the reduction of artefacts is typically only analysed based on grey value images. For testing and benchmarking of the mentioned methods for dimensional metrology, a dedicated multi-material reference standard-a multi-material hole cube-is used. This reference standard was originally developed for acceptance testing of CT systems. This paper shows a second application of this standard. The reference standard has been calibrated by tactile measurements to assess centre-centre distance errors as well as patch-based bidirectional length measurement errors on beam hardening corrected data and on uncorrected data. For the application of the method also to industrial multi-material scenarios, slight modifications of the ECC method are proposed. Practical aspects of both the ECC and the EDEC approaches as well as measurement results are analysed and discussed in detail. ECC was able to significantly improve dimensional measurements and was especially able to reduce extreme errors occurring in particular in multi-material scenarios by a factor of more than 4. EDEC, the dual-energy approach, reduced grey value inhomogeneities caused by artefacts even more. Its performance for dimensional measurements was however a little worse than ECC. EDEC data resulted in a slightly larger total range of residual measurement errors, mainly due to an elevated noise level.

This contribution presents a set of largely novel reference standards specially designed for testing different important physical effects and functionalities of radiography-based computed tomography (CT) simulation software. These standards were developed within the scope of the German cooperation project “CTSimU – Radiographic Computed Tomography Simulation for Measurement Uncertainty Evaluation” [1] and serve as tools for the basic qualification of the sufficient physical correctness and required features of simulation software of CT-based coordinate measurement systems (CMSs) via the analyses either of 2D projection images only or of full CT scans. The results serve as input to the German standardisation committee for the development of a new national VDI/VDE guideline in the series VDI/VDE 2630 dealing with the basic qualification aspect of CT simulation software and shall lay ground for the measurement uncertainty determination of dimensional measurements using CT.

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ObjectiveTo assess the efficacy of early therapeutic laser and ultrasound in the regeneration process of an injury in rats.MethodsWe used 24 rats. Eighteen underwent surgery for sciatic nerve compression by a hemostat above the popliteal fossa. The animals were divided into three groups of six animals each. Normal control group. GI: Injured control without therapeutic intervention. GII: laser ArGaAl therapeutic intervention. GIII: therapeutic intervention of Pulsed Ultrasound. We begin therapeutic interventions 24 hours after injury, with daily applications for a period of fourteen consecutive days.ResultsIn assessing the girth of the muscles of the right they, the following average decrease (in mm) for each GI: 0.45, GII: 0.42, GIII: 0.40 In relation to travel time, both GII and GIII presented significant difference when compared to GI. In the final evaluation of the IFC, GII excelled in the GIII. As for the healing observed, a major great improvement was observed in GII and GIII.ConclusionThe results showed that nerve recovery was higher with the laser application. Level of evidence II, Therapeutic Studies - Investigation of the results of treatment.