Search results for " Threshold"
showing 10 items of 497 documents
Temporal weights in loudness: Investigation of the effects of background noise and sound level
2019
Previous research has consistently shown that for sounds varying in intensity over time, the beginning of the sound is of higher importance for the perception of loudness than later parts (primacy effect). However, in all previous studies, the target sounds were presented in quiet, and at a fixed average sound level. In the present study, temporal loudness weights for a time-varying narrowband noise were investigated in the presence of a continuous bandpass-filtered background noise and the average sound levels of the target stimuli were varied across a range of 60 dB. Pronounced primacy effects were observed in all conditions and there were no significant differences between the temporal w…
Central alterations of neuromuscular function and feedback from group III-IV muscle afferents following exhaustive high-intensity one-leg dynamic exe…
2015
The aims of this investigation were to describe the central alterations of neuromuscular function induced by exhaustive high-intensity one-leg dynamic exercise (OLDE, study 1) and to indirectly quantify feedback from group III-IV muscle afferents via muscle occlusion (MO, study 2) in healthy adult male humans. We hypothesized that these central alterations and their recovery are associated with changes in afferent feedback. Both studies consisted of two time-to-exhaustion tests at 85% peak power output. In study 1, voluntary activation level (VAL), M-wave, cervicomedullary motor evoked potential (CMEP), motor evoked potential (MEP), and MEP cortical silent period (CSP) of the knee extensor…
Associations of cardiorespiratory fitness, adiposity, and arterial stiffness with cognition in youth
2020
Abstract Purpose To investigate the associations of cardiorespiratory fitness, adiposity, and arterial stiffness with cognition in 16‐ to 19‐year‐old adolescents. Methods Fifty four adolescents (35 girls; 19 boys) participated in the study. Peak oxygen uptake (V̇O2peak) and peak power output (Wmax) were measured by the maximal ramp test on a cycle ergometer and ventilatory threshold (VT) was determined with ventilation equivalents. Lean mass (LM) and body fat percentage (BF%) were measured using a bioelectrical impedance analysis. Aortic pulse wave velocity (PWVao) and augmentation index (AIx%) were measured by a non‐invasive oscillometric device. Working memory, short term memory, visual l…
Nasal tactile sensitivity in elderly
2010
Conclusion: Although older people varied widely in tactile sensitivity, our results show that tactile thresholds increased with age. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of aging on nasal tactile sensitivity. Methods: A total of 160 healthy patients aged between 50 and 90 years were included. According to their age, patients were divided into groups (A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and H). From the age of 50, each group included subjects with an age range of 5 years (i.e. group A, 50-55 years; group B, 56-60 years, etc.). Each patient's outcome was assessed through the nasal monofilament test: a set of 20 Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments was used to detect nasal sensitivity for …
Gentamicin increases nitric oxide production and induces hearing loss in guinea pigs.
2008
Objectives/Hypothesis: Gentamicin application is an important therapeutic option for Meniere's disease. However, even if given at intervals, a destruction of the cochlea was often observed in various animal models together with an increased content of nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species. The present study was undertaken to identify the correlation between hearing threshold alteration and the NO production in the lateral wall and organ of Corti of the guinea pig in response to gentamicin application. Study Design: Prospective animal study in guinea pigs. Methods: A single dose of gentamicin (10 mg/kg body weight) was injected intratympanally into male guinea pigs and the auditory b…
First Experiences With the Ponto⢢ SuperPower Osseointegrated Device
2018
Osseointegrated hearing devices Power and SuperPower present indications for bone thresholds of 55 and 65 dB respectively. We conducted a prospective observational study of a series of six cases with mixed hearing loss for whom implantation of the DAO Ponto™ Super-Power was performed. Tonal and verbal evaluations without and with background noise (HINTS) were performed prior to implantation and six months after adaptation. All the participants showed improvement in tonal and verbal results, varying according to the degree of contralateral hearing loss. The verbal results with background noise were noteworthy, where most of the patients obtained a signal-to-noise ratio between 2 and 4 dB. Th…
Retinal light sensitivity of the central visual field among 70- to 81-year-old men and women.
2009
Retinal light sensitivity of the central visual field (0-30 degrees), visual acuity, intraocular pressure and pupillary size were screened in 42 men and 42 women aged 70 to 81 years. The subjects were randomly selected from the population register. After excluding the diagnosed glaucoma cases, the men had better visual field light sensitivity values than the women. They also had lower intraocular pressure and a wider pupillary diameter than the women, whereas there were no differences in visual acuity between the sexes. When the effect of pupillary size was controlled the differences in visual field light sensitivity values between men and women became non-significant. Among these elderly p…
Prelingual sensorineural hearing loss and infants at risk: Western Sicily report.
2013
Objective: To evaluate independent etiologic factor associated with sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) in newborn at risk; to study the role of their interaction especially in NICU infants who present often multiple risk factors for SNHL. Methods: The main risk factors for SNHL reported by JCIH 2007 were evaluated on 508 infant at risk ranging from 4 to 20 weeks of life, transferred to the Audiology Department of Palermo from the main births centers of Western Sicily. After a global audiological assessment, performed with TEOAE, tympanometry and ABR, the prevalence and the effect of risk factors was statistically studied through univariate and multivariate analysis on the total population (n…
Focal cortical damage parallels cognitive impairment in minimal hepatic encephalopathy
2012
Little attention has been paid to cortical integrity in patients with minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE), although cognitive functions affected in early stages of liver disease are mainly allocated in different neocortical structures. Here we used cortical surface-based analysis techniques to investigate if patterns of cortical thinning accompany the mildest form of HE. To aim this goal, cortical thickness obtained from high-resolution 31 magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was measured in patients with no MHE (NMHE), MHE, and healthy controls. Further correlation analyses were performed to examine whether scores in the critical flicker frequency (CFF) test, and blood ammonia levels accounte…
Neuromuscular, metabolic and hormonal profiles of young tennis players and untrained boys.
1989
This study compared the neuromuscular, metabolic and hormonal profiles of trained prepubescent tennis players and an untrained group. The boys in the experimental group (n = 9; mean age +/- S.D. = 11.4 +/- 0.5 years) had participated in tennis training for 2.3 +/- 1.0 years and the boys in the control group (n = 9; mean age +/- S.D. = 10.9 +/- 0.4 years) were normal active volunteers. The tennis players were found to be physically more active than the controls when the comparison was made for either 1 year (4.9 +/- 1.8 vs 2.6 +/- 2.5 times per week; P less than 0.05) or for 1 week (3.4 +/- 1.2 vs 0.4 +/- 0.5 times; P less than 0.001) preceding the tests. Choice reaction time was significant…