Assessment of problematic sexual interests with the penile plethysmograph: an overview of assessment laboratories.

Phallometric testing, or penile plethysmography (PPG), is an objective measure of sexual arousal for males. While extensive research on the reliability and validity of PPG has promoted its reputation as the "gold standard" of objective measurement of sexual arousal, there is a lack of standardization of stimulus sets and interpretation of results between sites. This article describes the laboratory protocol employed for PPG at the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre's Sexual Behaviours Clinic (SBC) in Ottawa, Ontario, as well as those used by the Sexual Behaviors Clinic and Lab (SBCL) in the Community and Public Safety Psychiatry Division (CPSPD) of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) in Charleston, South Carolina. The need for standardization in both testing protocol and stimuli use across sites are highlighted.

The search for the holy grail: heart rate variability and thought field therapy.

Thought Field Therapy (TFT) is one of several unusual psychotherapies that have witnessed rapid growth over the past few years, despite the absence of scientific support. Promoters of TFT frequently cite changes in heart rate variability (HRV) as evidence of TFT's effects. Pignotti and Steinberg (2001) present reports of 39 cases in which HRV was assessed prior to and immediately following TFT. Serious methodological shortcomings preclude interpretation of these data with respect to either the efficacy of TFT or the clinical utility of HRV. Ethical concerns are raised about the aggressive promotion of TFT and the misuse of HRV.

Reliability of infrared plethysmography in BVP biofeedback therapy and the relevance for clinical application.

Biofeedback methods are well established as behavioral techniques for the therapy of various psychophysiological diseases. The forms of feedback generally employed are muscle activity (electromyogram), skin temperature, brain activity (electroencephalogram), and vasomotoricity. The latter technique, which employs plethysmographic feedback, has been studied most extensively in the therapy of migraine (vasoconstriction training, blood volume pulse training). Although the clinical efficacy has been demonstrated in several studies, little is known about the psychometric properties of this technique. This study examined the intrasession and intersession reliability of the pulse volume amplitude (PVA). The results showed that the PVA measurements within a single biofeedback session were highly reliable. Repositioning of the probe within the session resulted in a lower correlation coefficient, but one that was still sizable and significant. The PVA values from different sessions were not reliable (or comparable).

Modification of an automated vascular diagnostic system for hyperbaric use.

Modifications of an automated, noninvasive vascular diagnostic system (VASCULAB, MedaSonics, Inc.) for measuring blood pressure and plethysmographic blood flow responses to normobaric and hyperbaric oxygenation are described. The system consisted of a pump for inflating and deflating blood pressure cuffs and a microprocessor program controller (VSC21) with ultrasound Doppler, strain-gauge plethysmograph, and chart recorder. Inclusion of the VSC21 controller in the chamber was required for performance of procedures that could not be controlled from outside the chamber. All other components were outside the chamber. For fire prevention the VSC21 controller was nitrogen-purged in an acrylic case mounted on a mobile cart. Pressure-cuff tubes were attached via adapted fittings and connectors in the cart to connector ports in the controller's front panel. Electrical power cables and instrument signal wires were routed through chamber penetrations to an electrical power source and other VASCULAB components, respectively, outside the chamber. Initially, compression of the chamber to pressures in excess of 1.68 bar disabled the VSC21, requiring removal of its front membrane panel and ventilation of its pressure-sensitive keypad switches. This allowed automated assessment of blood pressure and calf blood flow at test pressures of 1.97 and 2.96 bar.