...Pacemakers for the Brain Payton Jackson University of Louisiana at Monroe When hearing the word pacemaker, the first thought that comes to one’s mind is a cardiac pacemaker. With a pacemaker for the brain, the wires are implanted in the brain instead of heart. Some of the things that brain pacemakers have been seen to do with medical and technological advances are reducing seizures in people with epilepsy, controlling the tremors of people with Parkinson’s disease, the testing for treatments of bipolar disorder and depression. The modern medical and technological advances that have been made contributes to all of those things. A brain pacemaker, also known as a neurostimulator, is implanted through a surgical procedure called deep brain stimulation. This is an invasive, chronically implanted device that uses electrical stimulation to alleviate dysfunctions of the brain (Johansson, Garwicz, Kanje, Halldenius, Schouenborg, 2015). There are three components to this pacemaker which are a lead, an extension, and an implantable pulse generator. According to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (2015), “the lead (also called an electrode)—a thin, insulated wire—is inserted through a small opening in the skull and implanted in the brain. The tip of the electrode is positioned within the specific brain area. The extension is an insulated wire that is passed under the skin of the head, neck, and shoulder, connecting the lead to the implantable pulse generator...
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...A tremor in just one hand, something you can hardly see, nothing to worry about as you age your body changes. Wrong! This could be the first sign of Parkinson’s disease and the most common, stiffness or slowing of body movement also can be signs of the onset of the disease. Even though many people have never seen nor have knowledge of Parkinson’s disease it is real, and it is a disorder that is progressive and involves the nervous system affecting your everyday movement. Your face shows little or no expression any more, if you have not learned to hide your expressions it maybe an early sign of Parkinson’s disease. The signs and symptoms of Parkinson’s disease will vary with each individual, and since early signs can be mild it is possible they are also unnoticed. This disease starts on one side of the body first, before the second side is affected, but the first side will always remain the worst. Some of the signs and symptoms may include: tremor or shaking which usually begins in your hands or fingers, slowed movement (bradykinesia) over time can occur, rigid or stiff muscles can occur in many parts of the body, impaired posture and balance, loss of automatic movements (blinking, smiling, swing of arms when walking), speech changes, and changes in how a person writes. The cause of Parkinson’s disease still remains unknown, but there are several factors that seem to play a part in it. There are certain genetic mutations that have been identified that can cause...
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...8/04/08 Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease affects the way you move. It happens when there is a problem with certain nerve cells in the brain. Normally, these nerve cells make an important chemical called dopamine. Dopamine sends signals to the part of your brain that controls movement. It lets your muscles move smoothly and do what you want them to do. When you have Parkinson’s, these nerve cells break down. Then you no longer have enough dopamine, and you have trouble moving the way you want to. Parkinson’s is progressive, which means it gets worse over time. But usually this happens slowly, over a period of many years. And there are good treatments that can help you live a full life. No one knows for sure what makes these nerve cells break down. But scientists are doing a lot of research to look for the answer. They are studying many possible causes, including aging and poisons in the environment. Abnormal genes seem to lead to Parkinson's disease in some people. But so far, there is not enough proof to show that it is always inherited. The four main symptoms of Parkinson’s are: Tremor, (which means shaking or trembling) Tremor may affect your hands, arms, legs, or head. Stiff muscles, slow movement, Problems with balance or walking. People usually start to have symptoms between the ages of 50 and 60, but in some people symptoms start earlier Tremor may be the first symptom you notice. It is one of the most common signs of the disease, although not everyone...
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...Research Paper: Deep Brain Stimulation in Chronic and Severe Anorexia Nervosa Search Engine: Google; Psychiatric Times Nursing_028 Adult & Adolescent Mental Health Adaption Anorexia Nervosa is a disorder in which eating, food, and weight control become obsessions. People who live with this disorder tend to weight themselves repeatedly, portion control, and eats only small portion of specific foods. Thoughts about dieting, foods, and body may take up most of your day leaving little to no time to enjoy other aspects of life. Anorexia affects both men and women of all ages. It can damage your health and created possible threats to life. Those who suffer with anorexia nervosa tend to loose their sense of self because no matter how skinny her or she becomes it is never enough. Although, those who suffer from this disorder deny it most of the time recovery is possible through various treatment methods. In Doctor Blake Woodside article “ Deep Brain Stimulation in Chronic and Severe Anorexia Nervosa” he mentions that current treatments show few significant improvements in patients who have chronic forms of Anorexia Nervosa. Deep brain simulations was originally used to reduce tremors and block involuntary movement in patients with motion disorders. Recently, it has been under investigation to use this treatment for psychiatric disorders. Deep brain stimulation treatment occurs when a patient undergoes the placement of surgically implanted electrodes into specific areas...
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...New Medical Devices in the US August 13 2010 Table of Contents 1. Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………2 2. Background and Framework……………………………………………………………………………………………………………4 2.1 Priority Medical Devices for the Netherlands…..……………………………………………………………………4 2.2 The US Vision: From see and treat to predict and prevent……………………………………………………6 2.3 Conclusions…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..7 3. Medical device sector in the US………………………………………………………………………………………………………8 3.1 Economic Impact…..………………………………………………………………………………………………………………8 3.2 The Sector by State…..…………………………………………………………………………………………………………10 3.3 Key Institutes: Patent Applications in the Cluster Areas…..………………………………………………….13 3.4 Conclusions…..…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….20 4. Turning research into novel medical devices………………………………………………………………………………….22 4.1 The Medical Device Development Process…..……………………………………………………………………..22 4.2 CIMIT: A Structure for Medical Device Innovation…..………………………………………………………….23 4.3 Stanford Biodesign: Innovation as a Discipline…..………………………………………………………………..26 4.4 Conclusions and Recommendations…..……………………………………………………………………………….28 5. Summary and Conclusions…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….30 6. Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….32 7. References…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….33 Appendices A1 Selection of Key Institutes A2 Results Patent Analysis A3 Research...
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...NOTE: This PDF document has a handy set of “bookmarks” for it, which are accessible by pressing the Bookmarks tab on the left side of this window. ***************************************************** We are the last. The last generation to be unaugmented. The last generation to be intellectually alone. The last generation to be limited by our bodies. We are the first. The first generation to be augmented. The first generation to be intellectually together. The first generation to be limited only by our imaginations. We stand both before and after, balancing on the razor edge of the Event Horizon of the Singularity. That this sublime juxtapositional tautology has gone unnoticed until now is itself remarkable. We're so exquisitely privileged to be living in this time, to be born right on the precipice of the greatest paradigm shift in human history, the only thing that approaches the importance of that reality is finding like minds that realize the same, and being able to make some connection with them. If these books have influenced you the same way that they have us, we invite your contact at the email addresses listed below. Enjoy, Michael Beight, piman_314@yahoo.com Steven Reddell, cronyx@gmail.com Here are some new links that we’ve found interesting: KurzweilAI.net News articles, essays, and discussion on the latest topics in technology and accelerating intelligence. SingInst.org The Singularity Institute for Artificial Intelligence: think tank devoted to increasing...
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...MODELS FOR ESTIMATION OF ISOMETRIC WRIST JOINT TORQUES USING SURFACE ELECTROMYOGRAPHY by Amirreza Ziai B.Eng., Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, 2008 THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF APPLIED SCIENCE In the School of Engineering Science Faculty of Applied Science © Amirreza Ziai 2011 SIMON FRASER UNIVERSITY Summer 2011 All rights reserved. However, in accordance with the Copyright Act of Canada, this work may be reproduced, without authorization, under the conditions for Fair Dealing. Therefore, limited reproduction of this work for the purposes of private study, research, criticism, review and news reporting is likely to be in accordance with the law, particularly if cited appropriately. APPROVAL Name: Degree: Title of Thesis: Amirreza Ziai M.A.Sc Models for estimation of isometric wrist joint torques using surface electromyography Examining Committee: Chair: Parvaneh Saeedi, P.Eng Assistant Professor – School of Engineering Science ______________________________________ Dr. Carlo Menon, P.Eng Senior Supervisor Assistant Professor – School of Engineering Science ______________________________________ Dr. Shahram Payandeh, P.Eng Supervisor Professor – School of Engineering Science ______________________________________ Dr. Bozena Kaminska, P.Eng Examiner Professor – School of Engineering Science Date Defended/Approved: _________September 2, 2011 ______________ ii ABSTRACT With an aging...
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