Recently, studying the shape memory effect of the biocompatible Ti alloys takes much attention in the biomedical and healthcare applications. This study concerns about characterizing the superelasticity of the new biocompatible Ti-17Nb-6Ta (TNT) alloy. Microstructure of TNT was observed using optical and confocal microscopes. The alloy consists of two phases: &#x3b2; (predominant phase) and &#x3b1;&#x2033; martensite phase. The influence of cold rolling deformation on the microstructure was illustrated in which the martensitic-induced transformation appeared by cold rolling. The alloy is ductile as only the fracture dimples appeared in its fracture surface. Multicyclic loading and deloading tensile testing was applied to TNT specimens (flat and wire shapes) in order to evaluate the superelasticity. A superelastic strain as high as 3.5&#x0025; was recorded for this TNT alloy. Therefore, TNT alloy has high potential for many biomedical and healthcare applications.

Alaa Keshtta

Mohamed A.-H. Gepreel

Superelasticity Evaluation of the Biocompatible Ti-17Nb-6Ta Alloy

Objectives. Various elastography techniques have been proffered based on linear or nonlinear constitutive models with the aim of detecting and classifying pathologies in soft tissues accurately and noninvasively. Biological soft tissues demonstrate behaviors which conform to nonlinear constitutive models, in particular the hyperelastic ones. In this paper, we represent the results of our steps towards implementing ultrasound elastography to extract hyperelastic constants of a tumor inside soft tissue. Methods. Hyperelastic parameters of the unknown tissue have been estimated by applying the iterative method founded on the relation between stress, strain, and the parameters of a hyperelastic model after (a) simulating the medium&#x2019;s response to a sinusoidal load and extracting the tissue displacement fields in some instants and (b) estimating the tissue displacement fields from the recorded/simulated ultrasound radio frequency signals and images using the cross correlation-based technique. Results. Our results indicate that hyperelastic parameters of an unidentified tissue could be precisely estimated even in the conditions where there is no prior knowledge of the tissue, or the displacement fields have been approximately calculated using the data recorded by a clinical ultrasound system. Conclusions. The accurate estimation of nonlinear elastic constants yields to the correct cognizance of pathologies in soft tissues.

Maryam Mehdizadeh Dastjerdi

Ali Fallah

Saeid Rashidi

An Iterative Method for Estimating Nonlinear Elastic Constants of Tumor in Soft Tissue from Approximate Displacement Measurements

The pluralism that characterized the development of psychiatric services around the world created a variety of policies, care models and building types, and fostered experimental approaches. Increased complexities of care, institutional remnants, stigma, and the limited diagnostic and interventional accuracy of psychiatric treatments resulted in institutional behaviors surviving, even in newly built facilities. This was raised by research on awarded psychiatric buildings. The locus of the research comprised two acute psychiatric wards in London. Each was evaluated using the SCP model, a tool specifically developed for the evaluation of mental health facilities, identifying the relation between policy, care regime, and patient-focused environment. Data were derived from plans, visits, and staff and patient interviews. Findings were juxtaposed to those of an earlier study using the same methodology. Also, a syntactic analysis was conducted, to identify the social logic of ward layouts. There were potential connections between regimes, spatial configuration, and the social fabric. Methodologies of architectural morphologies indicated areas that would attract people because of the layout rather than function. However, insights into medical architecture outlined institutional undercurrents and provided alternative interpretation to spatial analysis. Comprehending the social fabric of psychiatric facilities could challenge the current surveillance-led model, as psychosocial rehabilitation uses could be encouraged at points of higher integration.

Evangelia Chrysikou

Psychiatric Institutions and the Physical Environment: Combining Medical Architecture Methodologies and Architectural Morphology to Increase Our Understanding

The aim of this study is to develop and assess the peg transfer training module face, content and construct validation use of the box, virtual reality (VR), cognitive virtual reality (CVR), augmented reality (AR), and mixed reality (MR) trainer, thereby to compare advantages and disadvantages of these simulators. Training system (VatsSim-XR) design includes customized haptic-enabled thoracoscopic instruments, virtual reality helmet set, endoscope kit with navigation, and the patient-specific corresponding training environment. A cohort of 32 trainees comprising 24 novices and 8 experts underwent the real and virtual simulators that were conducted in the department of thoracic surgery of Yunnan First People&#x2019;s Hospital. Both subjective and objective evaluations have been developed to explore the visual and haptic potential promotions in peg transfer education. Experiments and evaluation results conducted by both professional and novice thoracic surgeons show that the surgery skills from experts are better than novices overall, AR trainer is able to provide a more balanced training environments on visuohaptic fidelity and accuracy, box trainer and MR trainer demonstrated the best realism 3D perception and surgical immersive performance, respectively, and CVR trainer shows a better clinic effect that the traditional VR trainer. Combining these in a systematic approach, tuned with specific fidelity requirements, medical simulation systems would be able to provide a more immersive and effective training environment.

Zhibao Qin

Yonghang Tai

Chengqi Xia

Jun Peng

Xiaoqiao Huang

Zaiqing Chen

Qiong Li

Junsheng Shi

Towards Virtual VATS, Face, and Construct Evaluation for Peg Transfer Training of Box, VR, AR, and MR Trainer

This research aimed to find main users, frequent utilized tasks, major usability problems, and the context of use of a neonatal incubator (NI) present in a neonatal intensive care unit from a Brazilian hospital and to find out the problems faced by a new user. The chosen methods were the heuristics analysis, contextual investigation, and usability test (UT). Nurses and technicians are the main users of NIs. The predominant contexts of use are the admission of newborns and the replacement of the equipment. Eight selected tasks were performed in the UT, and the most significant problems refer to alarms and configuration of the Air and Skin Modes, because the interface is not intuitive to novice users. Therefore, mitigating errors should be an investment in human factor engineering methods from the beginning of the product development process to the training of the main users.

Renata Aparecida Ribeiro Cust&#xf3;dio

Clarissa Trzesniak

Renata Pinto Ribeiro Miranda

Guilherme Henrique Donda Angelini

Jade Souza Bord&#xf3;n

Leila Cristina Santos Vieira

Carlos Henrique Pereira Mello

Applying Human Factors Engineering Methods for Risk Assessment of a Neonatal Incubator

The efficiency of electroporation (EP) has made it a widely used therapeutic procedure to transfer cell killing substances effectively to the target site. A lot of researches are being done on EP-based cancer treatment techniques. Electrochemotherapy (ECT) is the first EP-based application in the field of drug administration. ECT is a local and nonthermal treatment of cancer that combines the use of a medical device with pharmaceutical agents to obtain local tumor control in solid cancers. It involves the application of eight, 100&#xb5;s, pulses at 1 or 5000&#x2009;Hz frequency and specified electric field (V/cm) with a median duration of 25 minutes. The efficacy of chemotherapeutic drugs increases by applying short and intense electrical pulses. Several clinical studies proposed ECT as a safe and complementary curative or palliative treatment option (curative intent of 50&#x0025; to 63&#x0025; in the treatment of Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC)) to treat a number of solid tumors and skin malignancies, which are not suitable for conventional treatments. It is used currently for treatment of cutaneous and subcutaneous lesions, without consideration of their histology. On the contrary, it is also becoming a practical method for treatment of internal, deep-seated tumors and tissues. A review of this method, needed instruments, alternative image-guided procedures (IGP) approaches, and future perspectives and recommendations are discussed in this paper.

Nazila Esmaeili

Michael Friebe

Electrochemotherapy: A Review of Current Status, Alternative IGP Approaches, and Future Perspectives

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Journal of Healthcare Engineering provides a vehicle for the exchange of advanced knowledge, emerging technologies, and innovative ideas related to all aspects of engineering involved in healthcare delivery processes and systems.

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Journal of Healthcare Engineering - Table of contents 2019

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Journal of Healthcare Engineering provides a vehicle for the exchange of advanced knowledge, emerging technologies, and innovative ideas related to all aspects of engineering involved in healthcare delivery processes and systems.

Journal of Healthcare Engineering