Red blood cells in humans-and most other mammals-have a tendency to form aggregates with a characteristic face-to-face morphology, similar to a stack of coins. Known as rouleaux, these aggregates are a normally occurring phenomenon and have a major impact on blood rheology. What is the underlying mechanism that produces this pattern? Does this really happen in blood circulation? And do these rouleaux formations have a useful function? The first book to offer a comprehensive review of the subject, Red Blood Cell Aggregation tackles these and other questions related to red blood cell (RBC) aggregates. The book covers basic, clinical, and physiological aspects of this important biophysical phenomenon and integrates these areas with concepts in bioengineering. It brings together state-of-the-art research on the determinants, mechanisms, and measurement and effects of RBC aggregation as well as on variations and comparative aspects. After an introductory overview, the book outlines factors and conditions that affect RBC aggregation. It presents the two hypotheses-the bridging model and the depletion model-that provide potential mechanisms for the adhesive forces that lead to the regular packing of the cells in rouleaux formations. The book also reviews the methods used to quantify RBC aggregation in vitro, focusing on their importance in clinical practice. Chapters discuss the effect of RBC aggregation on the in vitro rheology of blood as well as on tube flow. The book also looks at what happens in the circulation when red blood cells aggregate and examines variations due to physiological and pathophysiological challenges. The concluding chapter explores the formation of red blood cell aggregates in other mammals. Written by leading researchers in the field, this is an invaluable resource for basic science, medical, and clinical researchers; graduate students; and clinicians interested in mammalian red blood cells.

The second edition of a bestseller, Design Controls for the Medical Device Industry provides a comprehensive review of the latest design control requirements, as well as proven tools and techniques to ensure your company's design control program evolves in accordance with current industry practice. The text assists in the development of an effective design control program that not only satisfies the US FDA Quality System Regulation (QSR) and ISO 9001 and 13485 standards, but also meets today's third-party auditor/investigator expectations and saves you valuable time and money. The author's continual participation in FDA QSR inspections and Notified Body ISO audits is reflected in updates to all chapters and appendices of the book, now bursting at the seams with: New coverage of ISO 9001 and 13485 design control requirements More real-world examples from the medical device industry Additional detail for greater understanding and clarity Fresh templates for practical implementation Extensive references for further study The book addresses design control elements such as design planning, input, output, review, verification, validation, change, transfer, and history, as well as risk management inclusive of human factors and usability, biocompatibility, the FDA Quality System Inspection Technique (QSIT) for design controls, and medical device regulations and classes in the US, Canada, and Europe.

The three-volume set LNCS 8149, 8150, and 8151 constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 16th International Conference on Medical Image Computing and Computer-Assisted Intervention, MICCAI 2013, held in Nagoya, Japan, in September 2013. Based on rigorous peer reviews, the program committee carefully selected 262 revised papers from 789 submissions for presentation in three volumes. The 81 papers included in the third volume have been organized in the following topical sections: image reconstruction and motion modeling; machine learning in medical image computing; imaging, reconstruction, and enhancement; segmentation; physiological modeling, simulation, and planning; intraoperative guidance and robotics; microscope, optical imaging, and histology; diffusion MRI; brain segmentation and atlases; and functional MRI and neuroscience applications.

This book constitutes the proceedings of the KR4HC 2010 workshop held at ECAI in Lisbon, Portugal, in August 2010. The 11 extended papers presented were carefully reviewed and selected from 19 submissions. The papers cover topics like ontologies, patient data, records, and guidelines, and clinical practice guidelines.

Ultrasound technology is enabling anesthesiologists to perform regional anesthetic procedures with greater confidence in accuracy and precision. With improvements in visualizing neural anatomy and needle movement, ultrasound guidance improves patient safety and operating room efficiency. This book offers a detailed, stepwise approach to this technique, identifying pearls and pitfalls to ensure success. Topics are organized into four chapters. The first chapter provides the basic principles behind ultrasound guided regional anesthesia, setting a strong context for the rest of the book. The last three cover the nerve blocks: upper extremity, lower extremity, and chest, trunk and spine. Each nerve block is comprehensively explained, divided up by introduction, anatomy, clinical applications, technique, alternate techniques, complications, and pearls. This new edition includes discussions of 6 new blocks: the suprascapular block, axillary nerve block for shoulder surgery, fascia iliaca block, lateral femoral cutaneous block, and the adductor canal block. This edition also contains over 40 new procedural and imaging figures, an appendix on what blocks to perform for specific surgeries, and new information on choice of local anesthetic agent, types of catheters and practical ultrasound physics to help improve scanning. Ultrasound Guided Regional Anesthesia provides authoritative, in-depth coverage of ultrasound guided regional anesthesia for the anesthesiologist beginning to use ultrasound and makes a great reference for the more seasoned physician.

This essential text provides a readable yet sophisticated overview of the basic concepts of information technologies as they apply in healthcare. Spanning areas as diverse as the electronic medical record, searching, protocols, and communications as well as the Internet, Enrico Coiera has succeeded in making this vast and complex area accessible and understandable to the non-specialist, while providing everything that students of medical informatics need to know to accompany their course. Fully revised, the third edition of Guide to Health Informatics remains essential reading for all health science undergraduates, clinical health professionals, and health service managers who need to appreciate and understand the role of informatics and its associated technologies for optimal practice and service delivery.

This book contains the proceedings of the 2018 International Conference on Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (BIOCOMP'18). Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary field that develops methods and software tools for understanding biological data. Computational Biology involves the development and application of data-analytical and theoretical methods, mathematical modeling and computational simulation techniques to the study of biological, behavioral, and social systems. BICOMP is an international conference that serves researchers, scholars, professionals, students, and academicians who are looking to both foster working relationships and gain access to the latest research results.

Fluorescein angiography is an indispensable part of ophthalmologic diagnosis and education, providing key insights into pathogenesis and treatment. Using nearly 900 illustrations, this new edition of the classic text/atlas covers all the clinically relevant diseases that can be diagnosed using fluorescein angiography - and is the first to include the relatively new technique of ICG angiography. The result is an authoritative, up-to-date reference, packed with superb illustrations and clinical examples, that is ideal for residents and general ophthalmologists who need to update and refresh their diagnostic skills.

Since the introduction of minimally invasive surgery, with its ability to access organs through small incisions, the number of applications of the technique has steadily increased. The term minimal access surgery now encompasses a variety of techniques including fibre-optic endoscopy and transanal endoscopic microsurgery as well as the well-documented laparoscopic and thoracoscopic approaches for a variety of conditions. Advances in technology now mean that, in the majority of cases, a minimalist approach is a feasible alternative to the more conventional option of open surgery. Written by an international group of experts, Minimal Access Surgery in Oncology is an authoritative, critical assessment of the application of minimally invasive surgery in the well circumscribed area of oncologic surgery which highlights the key pitfalls and controversies associated with all commonly used techniques and provides a balanced view of the benefits and drawbacks of each. This book is intended for surgeons and Oncologists in training and in practice.

Order the Set Medical Physics and save almost 25EURO. Medical Physics covers the applied branch of physics concerned with the application of concepts and methods of physics to diagnostics and therapeutics of human diseases. The first part, Physical and Physiological Aspects of the Body, covers those body systems that have a strong physical component, such as body mechanics, energy household, action potential, signal transmission in neurons, respiratory and circulatory system as well as visual and sound perception. The second part of this volume, Imaging Modalities without Ionizing Radiation, introduces sonography, endoscopy, and magnetic resonance imaging. The second volume complements the imaging modalities with the use of ionizing radiation: x-ray radiography, scintigraphy, SPECT, and PET. This first part is followed by chapters on radiation treatment of tumors, in particular x-ray radiotherapy, proton and neutron radiation therapy, and brachytherapy. The last part treats aspects of diagnostics and therapeutics beyond radiology, including laser applications, multifunctional nanoparticles and prosthetics. The present volume connects the basic principles of physics with the functionality of the body and with physical methods used for diagnostics and therapeutics. covers the first part of the entire field, including the physics of the body and imaging methods without the use of ionizing radiation. provides an introduction for Bachelor students to the main concepts of Medical Physics during their first semesters guiding them to further specialized and advanced literature. contains many questions & answers related to the content of each chapter. is also available as a set together with Volume 2. Contents Part A: Physical and physiological aspects of the body Brief overview of body parts and functions Body mechanics and muscles Elastomechanics: bones and fractures Energy household of the body Resting potential and action potential Signal transmission in neurons Electrophysical aspects of the heart The circulatory system The respiratory system Kidneys Basic mechanism of vision Sound and sound perception Part B: Imaging modalities without ionizing radiation Sonography Endoscopy Magnetic resonance imaging Questions & answers

Enhanced living environments employ information and communications technologies to support true ambient assisted living for adults and people with disabilities. This book provides an overview of today's architectures, techniques, protocols, components, and cloud-based solutions related to ambient assisted living and enhanced living environments. Topics covered include: an introduction to enhanced living environments; pervasive sensing for social connectedness; ethics in information and communication technologies; service scenarios in smart personal environments; technological support to stress level monitoring; big data systems to improve healthcare information searching over the Internet; sensors for wireless body area networks; linear wireless sensor networks and protocols in next generation networks; model-compilation challenges for cyber-physical systems; health monitoring using wireless body area networks; wearable health care; and intelligent systems for after-stroke home rehabilitation.

The problem of deciding which health care technologies to evaluate is urgent. With new technologies proliferating alongside steadily increasing health care costs, it is critical to discriminate among technologies to direct tests and treatments at those who can benefit the most. Given the vast number of clinical problems and technologies to be evaluated, the many months of work required to study just one problem, and the relatively few clinicians with highly developed analytic skills, institutions must set priorities for assessment. This book sets forth criteria and a method that can be used by public agencies such as the Office of Health Technology Assessment (in the U.S. Public Health Service) and by any private organization conducting such work to decide which technologies to assess or reassess.

"Compression for Clinicians: Considerations for Hearing Aid Fittings, Third Edition" explains many developments that have taken place in the world of hearing aid compression, fitting methods, and real ear measurement. Directional microphones and digital features of noise reduction, feedback reduction, and expansion are also covered. The text aims to make difficult concepts easier to understand and to explain in plain language many topics pertaining to compression. The third edition recognizes two distinct clinical populations of sensori-neural hearing loss; mild-to-moderate on the one hand, and more severe on the other. These two clinical populations are well served by a corresponding pair of compression types; wide dynamic range compression and output limiting compression. Another double distinction held throughout the text is the two-part task for all hearing aids; providing gain and also, increasing the signal-to-noise ratio. Gain is addressed by compression, while listening in noise is addressed by directional microphones and digital noise reduction.New to the Third Edition:*Includes new chapters on common clinical encounters (Chapter 1), real ear measurement (Chapter 5), and adaptive dynamic range optimization (Chapter 10)*Distinguishes between "sensory" and "neural" hearing loss and devotes a separate chapter to each of these types of sensori-neural hearing loss*Contains updated coverage of digital hearing aids, directional microphones, and digital noise reduction*Retains a strong focus on the historical development of compression from yesterday's analog hearing aids to digital hearing aids of today"Compression for Clinicians" is intended for those studying to become hearing health care professionals, including audiologists and hearing instrument practitioners. It is also intended for practicing clinicians who simply want to refresh their knowledge base concerning hearing loss and hearing aids. Clinically relevant and very thorough, it provides a relevant compass in the world of compression hearing aids.

Thirty years ago, biologists worked at laboratory benches, peering down microscopes, surrounded by petri dishes. Today, they are just as likely to be found in an office, poring over lines of code on computers. The use of computers in biology has radically transformed who biologists are, what they do, and how they understand life. In Life Out of Sequence, Hallam Stevens looks inside this new landscape of digital scientific work. Stevens chronicles the emergence of bioinformatics - the mode of working across and between biology, computing, mathematics, and statistics - from the 1960s to the present, seeking to understand how knowledge about life is made in and through virtual spaces. He shows how scientific data moves from living organisms into DNA sequencing machines, through software, and into databases, images, and scientific publications. What he reveals is a biology very different from the one of predigital days: a biology that includes not only biologists but also highly interdisciplinary teams of managers and workers; a biology that is more centered on DNA sequencing, but one that understands sequence in terms of dynamic cascades and highly interconnected networks. Life Out of Sequence thus offers the computational biology community welcome context for their own work while also giving the public a frontline perspective of what is going on in this rapidly changing field.

This text provides an examination of the monitoring of cardiac rhythms. After introductory chapters on the physiology of the cardiovascular system, and the difference between clinical and technical observations, it describes and discusses all forms of cardiac monitoring, including ECG, blood gases, acid-base balance, haemodynamic and central venous pressure.

Researchers dedicated to the fundamental and clinical aspects of fibrillation and defibrillation, together with involved physicians, have exchanged their first hand research and experiences and incorporated it into this monograph which presents and reviews their latest results. The four parts of this book provide updated information on sudden cardiac death and the electrophysiology of atrial and ventricular fibrillation. Special consideration is given to device therapy, with the goal of providing the reader with useful information for the decision-making process in medical practice. This book should become a standard reference item to clinics worldwide where therapy for fibrillation is being carried out. It contains essential information of the use of ICD implants including instructions on titration and follow-up. It should be a basic text for this area of medical endeavor.

Der Band liefert praxisbezogenes Wissen zur Planung, Durchfuhrung und Interpretation klinischer Studien. Nach einer Einfuhrung in die Methoden der klinischen Epidemiologie widmen sich die Autoren der Analyse von Beobachtungsstudien, Randomisierungsformen, Good Clinical Practice sowie der Wissenschaftstheorie. Wichtige Fragen, beispielsweise die, wie Studienprotokolle richtig erstellt werden, behandeln sie ausfuhrlich anhand von Praxisbeispielen. Die 3. Auflage wurde komplett aktualisiert, neu strukturiert und um aktuelle Leitlinien erganzt."