The assessment of usability of pain medical device by physiatrists and physiotherapists: A Delphi survey.

ABSTRACT: When developing a new medical device, it is essential to assess the usability of such a device through various stakeholders.This study assessed the usability of pain medical devices through a Delphi survey administered to physiatrists and physiotherapists.A Delphi survey was conducted on the problems and improvements in hardware and software for a panel consisting of 10 physiatrists and 10 physiotherapists. A total of 3 rounds of surveys were conducted, and the third round of survey was confirmed through a Likert scale (1 = strongly agree to 5 = strongly disagree).The 2 groups generally had a common perception of the problems and improvements in pain medical devices. However, the physiatrist group mostly identified problems such as linking patient information, whereas the physiotherapist group deemed hardware problems such as device weight or connection cables as being more important (mean [standard deviation]; physiatrist, hardware 2.90 [0.93], software 2.28 [0.91] / physiotherapist, hardware 3.04 [0.84], software 3.03 [1.13]).To date, analysis has not been conducted by dividing the focus of various stakeholders using pain medical devices. The difference in view of the usability of these 2 stakeholder groups should be considered when improving the hardware or software of pain medical devices in the future. Further research is warranted to investigate other stakeholders such as patients and device developers to improve the devices.

Assessment of Aspiration Risk Using the Mann Assessment of Swallowing Ability in Brain-Injured Patients With Cognitive Impairment.

Objectives: The purposes of this study are to determine whether there is a correlation between the Mann Assessment of Swallowing Ability (MASA) and modified MASA (mMASA) according to various cognitive status and to investigate whether the cognitive status of patients with brain damage affects the prediction of aspiration using the MASA. Methods: We retrospectively assessed 146 dysphagic patients with brain lesion due to various causes. Dysphagia was assessed using the MASA and mMASA. According to the videofluoroscopic swallowing study results, patients were divided into two groups: aspirators and non-aspirators. Patients were classified into four groups according to cognitive function according to the Korean version of Mini-mental State Examination scores: normal (>24), mild (21-24), moderate (10-20), and severe (<10) cognitive impairment. The correlation between the MASA and mMASA scores according to cognitive function were analyzed. The sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of the MASA scores for predicting aspiration were assessed. Results: The MASA and mMASA scores showed a significant positive correlation in all cognition groups. In patients with more severe cognitive impairment MASA scores had high sensitivity and low specificity for prediction of aspiration. On the other hand, the MASA scores had low sensitivity and high specificity for prediction of aspiration in the normal and mild cognitive impairment groups. Conclusions: The MASA and mMASA scores correlated with each other in patients with various levels of cognitive function. Interestingly, this study results demonstrated that patients with good cognitive function may have false negative results of MASA screening due to low sensitivity. Thus, when interpreting the MASA results, the impact of cognitive status should be taken into consideration.

A wireless laser displacement sensor node for structural health monitoring.

This study describes a wireless laser displacement sensor node that measures displacement as a representative damage index for structural health monitoring (SHM). The proposed measurement system consists of a laser displacement sensor (LDS) and a customized wireless sensor node. Wireless communication is enabled by a sensor node that consists of a sensor module, a code division multiple access (CDMA) communication module, a processor, and a power module. An LDS with a long measurement distance is chosen to increase field applicability. For a wireless sensor node driven by a battery, we use a power control module with a low-power processor, which facilitates switching between the sleep and active modes, thus maximizing the power consumption efficiency during non-measurement and non-transfer periods. The CDMA mode is also used to overcome the limitation of communication distance, which is a challenge for wireless sensor networks and wireless communication. To evaluate the reliability and field applicability of the proposed wireless displacement measurement system, the system is tested onsite to obtain the required vertical displacement measurements during the construction of mega-trusses and an edge truss, which are the primary structural members in a large-scale irregular building currently under construction. The measurement values confirm the validity of the proposed wireless displacement measurement system and its potential for use in safety evaluations of structural elements.