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A hybrid neuro-fuzzy system is constructed for estimating the magnitude of electromyographical responses of ten trunk muscles based on two lifting task variables as model inputs. The model performance could be improved by increasing the number of inputs, including additional task variables as well as the subjects characteristics.

The main objective of this study was to examine the sensitivity of the Lane Change Test (LCT) as proposed by International Organization of Standardization by evaluating LCT performance between primary and dual-task conditions in simulated driving conditions. The study involved four different secondary tasks that involved tracking, visual search, memory, and data entry, each under two different difficulty levels. The primary task involved a series of lane changes on a three-lane straight roadway where the actual lane change trajectory was compared with a normative model of the trajectory. Thus, the lane change performance was measured by the mean deviation of the actual driving trajectory from the normative trajectory. Twenty-four participants within three age groups (25-34, 35-45, and >55 years) and equally distributed between male and female took part in the study. Thus, the study also investigated the effect of age and gender on driving performance. The results showed that secondary tasks that require visual attention and psychomotor coordination deteriorated driving performance the most, whereas tasks that required memory scanning and utilization of the auditory modality least affected driving performance. The study also found differences in LCT performances with respect to three different age categories and gender. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hospital-acquired conditions such as catheter-associated urinary tract infection, stage 3 or 4 hospital-acquired pressure injury, and falls with injury are common, costly, and largely preventable. This study used participatory design methods to design and evaluate low-fidelity prototypes of clinical dashboards to inform high-fidelity prototype designs to visualize integrated risks based on patient profiles. Five low-fidelity prototypes were developed through literature review and by engaging nurses, nurse managers, and providers as participants (N = 23) from two hospitals in different healthcare systems using focus groups and interviews. Five themes were identified from participatory design sessions: Need for Integrated Hospital-Acquired Condition Risk Tool, Information Needs, Sources of Information, Trustworthiness of Information, and Performance Tracking Perspectives. Participants preferred visual displays that represented patient comparative risks for hospital-acquired conditions using the familiar design metaphor of a gauge and green, yellow, and red "traffic light" colors scheme. Findings from this study were used to design a high-fidelity prototype to be tested in the next phase of the project. Visual displays of hospital-acquired conditions that are familiar in display and simplify complex information such as the green, yellow, and red dashboard are needed to assist clinicians in fast-paced clinical environments and be designed to prevent alert fatigue.

The primary objective of this study was to explore nonlinear characteristics, if any, of the surface myoelectrical (EMG) activity of the biceps muscle during simulated maximum voluntary contraction at a reference arm posture (MVCRP), and at an elevated static arm work posture (EAWP) observed on the manufacturing assembly line. The results showed that positive Lyapunov exponents existed for each of the trials in both work postures. The statistical test of significance showed that surface EMG of the biceps brachii was more chaotic under the MVCRP condition as compared to the EWAP condition. Based on the Kaplan-Yorke dimension, it was observed that the recorded two types of time series EMG data were similar in complexity. The study also found a significant difference in fractal dimensions between the two postures. It was concluded that the nonlinear dynamical EMG properties expressed in terms of the Lyapunov exponents, Kaplan-Yorke dimension, and fractal dimensions could be used as sensitive indices for evaluation of the level of muscular efforts under static work conditions.