How can technology assist occupational voice users?

SUMMARY: The voice is an important tool for people who use it daily in their occupations. However, what technological options are available to such individuals to allow them to monitor or take care of their voices? OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study is to answer two research questions: (1) What technologies exist to monitor or take care of the voice in occupational voice users? (2) What is the technology readiness level (TRL) of the technologies used to monitor or take care of the voice in occupational voice users? DATA SOURCES: Embase, IEEE, Medline, Proquest, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. METHODS: A systematic literature review was conducted. Articles that reported results regarding technologies (hardware, software, or mobile apps) that were used to monitor or take care of the voice in occupational voice users were included. RESULTS: After reviewing 4581 abstracts, 10 full text studies were included in the literature review. The technologies found include 30% hardware, 30% hardware plus software, and 50% mobile apps, with an overall TRL mean of 5.3 (SD = 2.3). CONCLUSION: Further research is necessary for higher validity in the studies and to increase the readiness in the development of current technologies to offer more options for this population.Implications for RehabilitationThe evidence for the impact of the use of the technologies for occupational voice users is still lowThere is emerging evidence that mobile apps and artificial intelligence algorithms can be used to investigate vocal disorders or potential risks in occupational voice usersMore research is required to increase the readiness developmental stage of current technologies for occupational voice users.

Preliminary testing of eye gaze interfaces for controlling a haptic system intended to support play in children with physical impairments: Attentive versus explicit interfaces.

INTRODUCTION: Children with physical impairments may face challenges to play because of their motor impairments, which could lead to negative impacts in their development. The objective of this article was to compare two eye gaze interfaces that identified the desired toy a user wanted to reach with a haptic-enabled telerobotic system in a play activity. METHODS: One of the interfaces was an attentive user interface predicted the toy that children wanted to reach by observing where they incidentally focused their gaze. The other was an explicit eye input interface determined the toy after the child dwelled for 500 ms on a selection point. Five typically developing children, an adult with cerebral palsy (CP) and a child with CP participated in this study. They controlled the robotic system to play a whack-a-mole game. RESULTS: The prediction accuracy of the attentive interface was higher than 89% in average, for all participants. All participants did the activity faster with the attentive interface than with the explicit interface. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the attentive interface was faster and easier to use, especially for children. Children needed constant prompting and were not 100% successful at using the explicit interface.

Case report: Maternal tyrosinemia type 1a under NTBC treatment with tyrosine- and phenylalanine restricted diet in Chile.

We report the case of a 17-year-old girl with Tyrosinemia type 1a who carried a planned pregnancy to term while being under 2-(2-nitro-4-trifluoromethylbenzoyl)-1,3-cyclohexanedione (NTBC, nitisinone) treatment and a tyrosine- and phenylalanine-restricted diet. She was on treatment since 2 months of age with poor metabolic control prior to her pregnancy (tyrosine 838 ± 106 umol/L). NTBC and a low tyrosine and phenylalanine diet were continued during her pregnancy. She unfortunately suffered from urinary tract infection and anemia during her pregnancy, with median plasma tyrosine and phenylalanine levels of 613 ± 106 umol/L (200-400 umol/L) and 40.2 ± 8 umol/L (35-90 umol/L), respectively. After 40 weeks of gestation, the patient gave birth to a healthy boy, with no adverse effects related to the use of NTBC. The newborn presented with a transitory elevation of plasma tyrosine levels and normal phenylalanine, methionine, and succinylacetone levels. By 12 months of age, the child was determined to have normal psychomotor development. At 20 months old, he was diagnosed with a mild developmental delay; however, global cognitive evaluation with the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC) test at 5 years old showed normal performance. Here, we discuss one of the few reported cases of nitisinone treatment during pregnancy and demonstrate a lack of teratogenicity and long-term cognitive disabilities.

Molecular phylogeny of Panaspis and Afroablepharus skinks (Squamata: Scincidae) in the savannas of sub-Saharan Africa.

African snake-eyed skinks are relatively small lizards of the genera Panaspis and Afroablepharus. Species allocation of these genera frequently changed during the 20th century based on morphology, ecology, and biogeography. Members of these genera occur primarily in savanna habitats throughout sub-Saharan Africa and include species whose highly conserved morphology poses challenges for taxonomic studies. We sequenced two mitochondrial (16S and cyt b) and two nuclear genes (PDC and RAG1) from 76 Panaspis and Afroablepharus samples from across eastern, central, and southern Africa. Concatenated gene-tree and divergence-dating analyses were conducted to infer phylogenies and biogeographic patterns. Molecular data sets revealed several cryptic lineages, with most radiations occurring during the mid-Miocene to Pliocene. We infer that rifting processes (including the formation of the East African Rift System) and climatic oscillations contributed to the expansion and contraction of savannas, and caused cladogenesis in snake-eyed skinks. Species in Panaspis and Afroablepharus used in this study, including type species for both genera, formed a monophyletic group. As a result, the latter genus should be synonymized with the former, which has priority. Conservatively, we continue to include the West African species P. breviceps and P. togoensis within an expanded Panaspis, but note that they occur in relatively divergent clades, and their taxonomic status may change with improved taxon sampling. Divergence estimates and cryptic speciation patterns of snake-eyed skinks were consistent with previous studies of other savanna vertebrate lineages from the same areas examined in this study.

John Benjamin Murphy: el signo y la medicina basada en evidencias / John Benjamin Murphy: the sign, and evidence-based medicine

Objetivo: Narrar la vida y obra de John Benjamín Murphy. Diseño: Ensayo histórico (16 referencias). Sede: Departamento de Investigación, Escuela de Medicina. Resultado: John Benjamin Murphy nació en Apletton, Wisconsin el 21 de diciembre de 1857. Egresó del Rush Medical College en 1876. Tras ejercer algunos años, en 1882 decide continuar su preparación en Europa siendo discípulo de Theodore Billroth. Regresa a su país como profesor en su Alma Mater, al tiempo que comenzó sus prácticas quirúrgicas e investigación clínica ante la Chicago Medical Society. Su investigación a lo largo de esos años lo llevó, en 1895, a convertirse en Jefe de Cirujanos en el Hospital Mercy en Chicago. A lo largo de su desempeño profesional, trabajó en distintas áreas de la medicina; se le reconocen valiosas aportaciones en cirugía vascular, tuberculosis pulmonar, neurocirugía y principalmente en semiología digestiva, donde define el signo de Murphy revolucionando el tratamiento para pacientes con colecistitis. Murphy publicó sus primeros trabajos en los primeros números de lo que hoy son Clínicas Quirúrgicas de Norteamérica. En el hospital Mercy, innovó en la enseñanza de la medicina a través de sus ''wet clinics''. Sin duda, un hombre muy propositivo para su época, que marcó la diferencia en la práctica quirúrgica, respetado y a la vez muy criticado por sus colegas. Falleció el día 11 de agosto de 1916, marcando los inicios de la práctica médica moderna.

Objective: To narrate the life and work of John Benjamin Murphy. Design: Historical Assay (16 references). Setting: Research Department, School of Medicine, Universidad Cristobal Colón, Veracruz, Mexico. Result: John Benjamin Murphy was born in Apletton, WI, USA, on the 21st of December 1857. He graduated from Rush Medical College in 1876. After practicing medicine for some years, in 1882, he decided to continue his preparation in Europe and became a pupil of Theodore Billroth. He returned to his country as a professor at his Alma Mater, and at the same time he started his surgical practices and clinical research at the Chicago Medical Society. His research along these years, led him, in 1895, to become the surgeon-in-chief at the Mercy hospital in Chicago. Along his professional career he worked in different areas of medicine, and he is known for valuable work done in vascular surgery, pulmonary tuberculosis, neurosurgery, and mainly in digestive semiology, where he defined the Murphy sign, changing completely the treatment of patients with cholecystitis. Murphy published his first works in what is known today as The Surgical Clinics of Northamerica. At the Mercy hospital, he innovated the teaching of medicine through his ''wet clinics''. Without any doubt, he was a very purposeful man for his time, who made a difference in the surgical practice, he was respected and, at the same time, criticized by his colleagues. He died on August 11, 1916, hallmarking the start of modern medical practice.