Audiometry, Pure-Tone ; Humans ; Psychophysics

OBJECTIVES: Biosignal data captured by patient monitoring systems could provide key evidence for detecting or predicting critical clinical events; however, noise in these data hinders their use. Because deep learning algorithms can extract features without human annotation, this study hypothesized that they could be used to screen unacceptable electrocardiograms (ECGs) that include noise. To test that, a deep learning-based model for unacceptable ECG screening was developed, and its screening results were compared with the interpretations of a medical expert. METHODS: To develop and apply the screening model, we used a biosignal database comprising 165,142,920 ECG II (10-second lead II electrocardiogram) data gathered between August 31, 2016 and September 30, 2018 from a trauma intensive-care unit. Then, 2,700 and 300 ECGs (ratio of 9:1) were reviewed by a medical expert and used for 9-fold cross-validation (training and validation) and test datasets. A convolutional neural network-based model for unacceptable ECG screening was developed based on the training and validation datasets. The model exhibiting the lowest cross-validation loss was subsequently selected as the final model. Its performance was evaluated through comparison with a test dataset. RESULTS: When the screening results of the proposed model were compared to the test dataset, the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve and the F1-score of the model were 0.93 and 0.80 (sensitivity = 0.88, specificity = 0.89, positive predictive value = 0.74, and negative predictive value = 0.96). CONCLUSIONS: The deep learning-based model developed in this study is capable of detecting and screening unacceptable ECGs efficiently.
Dataset ; Electrocardiography ; Humans ; Learning ; Mass Screening ; Monitoring, Physiologic ; Noise ; ROC Curve ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Signal Detection, Psychological

An important and unresolved question is how human brain regions process information and interact with each other in intertemporal choice related to gains and losses. Using psychophysiological interaction and dynamic causal modeling analyses, we investigated the functional interactions between regions involved in the decision-making process while participants performed temporal discounting tasks in both the gains and losses domains. We found two distinct intrinsic valuation systems underlying temporal discounting in the gains and losses domains: gains were specifically evaluated in the medial regions, including the medial prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortices, and losses were evaluated in the lateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. In addition, immediate reward or punishment was found to modulate the functional interactions between the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and distinct regions in both the gains and losses domains: in the gains domain, the mesolimbic regions; in the losses domain, the medial prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate cortex, and insula. These findings suggest that intertemporal choice of gains and losses might involve distinct valuation systems, and more importantly, separate neural interactions may implement the intertemporal choices of gains and losses. These findings may provide a new biological perspective for understanding the neural mechanisms underlying intertemporal choice of gains and losses.
Adult ; Brain ; diagnostic imaging ; physiology ; Brain Mapping ; Delay Discounting ; physiology ; Female ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Neural Pathways ; diagnostic imaging ; physiology ; Neuropsychological Tests ; Psychophysics ; Reward ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVES: The goal of the present study was to evaluate the reliability and validity of the Korean version of the tinnitus handicap questionnaire (THQ-K). METHODS: A total of 60 patients were included in this study. Patients responded to the THQ-K, the tinnitus handicap inventory (THI), Beck's depression index (BDI), and the visual analogue scale (VAS) for loudness and pitch, loudness match, and minimum masking level (MML) test were performed. RESULTS: Internal consistency of the THQ-K was examined using Cronbach coefficient alpha. Cronbach alpha was 0.96. The THQ-K showed a significant correlation with THI, BDI, VAS for distress, and VAS for loudness, but no significant correlation with psychoacoustic measurement of tinnitus, such as loudness match, pitch match, and MML. CONCLUSION: The THQ-K is a reliable and valid test for evaluating the degree of handicap due to tinnitus for both research and clinical use.
Depression ; Humans ; Masks ; Psychoacoustics ; Reproducibility of Results ; Tinnitus*

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of early scream sound stress on the ability of spatial learning and memory, the levels of norepinephrine (NE) and corticosterone (CORT) in serum, and the morphology of adrenal gland.
 METHODS: Female Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were treated daily with scream sound from postnatal day 1(P1) for 21 d. Morris water maze was used to measure the spatial learning and memory ability. The levels of serum NE and CORT were determined by radioimmunoassay. Adrenal gland of SD rats was collected and fixed in formalin, and then embedded with paraffin. The morphology of adrenal gland was observed by HE staining.
 RESULTS: Exposure to early scream sound decreased latency of escape and increased times to cross the platform in Morris water maze test (P<0.05). The levels of serum NE was significantly elevated, with an obvious tendency in the increase of CORT level (P<0.05). The morphology of adrenal gland was also influenced. 
 CONCLUSION Newborn female rats subjected to scream sound stress can enhance spatial learning and memory ability in adulthood, which is related to activation of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis and sympathetic nervous system.
Adrenal Glands ; anatomy & histology ; Animals ; Corticosterone ; blood ; Female ; Maze Learning ; Memory ; Norepinephrine ; blood ; Psychoacoustics ; Rats ; Rats, Sprague-Dawley ; Stress, Psychological ; Vocalization, Animal

OBJECTIVETo investigate whether the neural representations underlying alternating two acupoint combinations (ACs) are the same or not.

METHODSIn this functional magnetic resonance imaging study, two sets of analgesia ACs were utilized, including Waiguan (TE5) and Qiuxu (GB40) for Group A, and Neiguan (PC6) and Taichong (LR3) for Group B, which are the most commonly adopted in clinical treatment. Each group had 20 healthy subjects. An experimental design was proposed, which consisted of a pre-needling resting phase, a needling phase and a post-needling resting phase. This paradigm optimally mimics the clinical protocol as well as focuses on both the stimulation and the resting periods. The results were subjected to general linear model analysis, conjunction analysis and the functional connectivity analysis.

RESULTSThe rostral anterior cingulated cortex was engaged in the initiative period of the acupuncture effect in both groups, and it was chosen as the seed region for the functional connectivity analysis for the following resting period. The results showed that several shared brain regions were involved in both groups, in particular the insula, amygdala and hypothalamus. Moreover, significant differences were located at the posterior cingulated cortex as revealed by a two sample -test (P<0.05, corrected). Other regions showed no significant differences. This finding was further supported by the spatial correlation analysis that the two groups were significantly correlated (r =0.51, P<0.01).

CONCLUSIONThis preliminary research helps us understand the neurophysiological mechanisms of acupuncture when following clinical guidelines on ACs, as well as provides an important opportunity to develop better treatment strategies for reducing, or even preventing pain.

Acupuncture Points ; Acupuncture Therapy ; Female ; Gyrus Cinguli ; physiology ; Humans ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Male ; Nerve Net ; physiology ; Nervous System Physiological Phenomena ; Psychophysics ; Rest ; Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted ; Statistics as Topic ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVE: To compare the consistency of four olfactory psychophysical test methods. METHOD: Twenty out-patients were done with olfactory psychophysical test and the results were analyzed. The four olfactory psychophysical test methods include simple test method, UPSIT, Sniffin Sticks test and the T&T olfactometer test. RESULT: The consistency of four test methods reached 85%, and UPSIT test can identify pseudo smell obstacles. CONCLUSION There is reliable and stable outcome of the four psychophysical olfactory test methods.
Adolescent ; Adult ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Olfaction Disorders ; diagnosis ; Olfactometry ; methods ; Psychophysics ; Reference Values ; Smell ; Young Adult

Vigilance is the body level of awareness for objective things. It has been used in security, medical and other fields since people used it as an objective indicator. Therefore automatical vigilance detection has become a major issue needed to be resolved as soon as possible. The methods of vigilance detection at home and abroad in recent years was analyzed in this paper, which will benefit the research and the people dedicated in vigilance detection.
Arousal ; physiology ; Awareness ; physiology ; Brain ; physiology ; Electrocardiography ; Electroencephalography ; Humans ; Neural Networks (Computer) ; Pulse ; Signal Detection, Psychological ; physiology ; Task Performance and Analysis

OBJECTIVE: Tried to find the relationship between tinnitus and each testing method, provided information for objective diagnosis and treatment for tinnitus patients with sensorineural hearing loss. METHOD: The characteristics of audiology tests, including pure tone audiometric, acoustic immittance, middle ear muscle reflexes, matching test, distortion products otoacoustic emission(DPOAE) were compared in 79 ears of 69 tinnitus patients with sensorineural hearing loss. RESULT: The RI positive rate was higher in Convergence curve in tinnitus patients of sensorineural hearing loss, with the rate being 51.3%. The detection rates of DPOAE were 15.2% in patients of sensorineural hearing loss tinnitus groups, which were significant lower than those in control group. CONCLUSION Psychoacoustic techniques can produce a useful amount of clinical data regarding tinnitus in different aspects, these data can help clinicians design needed based managements. DPOAE test is helpful for the diagnosis of lesions in some tinnitus patients.
Audiometry, Pure-Tone ; Hearing Loss, Sensorineural ; complications ; physiopathology ; Hearing Tests ; methods ; Humans ; Otoacoustic Emissions, Spontaneous ; Psychoacoustics ; Tinnitus ; complications ; physiopathology

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Knowledge about the incidence and clinical characteristics of tinnitus can be useful for diagnostic approach and treatment plan. We analyzed the incidence and clinical characteristics of each case of tinnitus according to the classification of tinnitus. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: The study recruited 211 tinnitus patients who visited tinnitus clinic from March 2009 to August 2009. First, patients were diagnosed and classified as sensorineural tinnitus and somatosounds. Somatosounds were subdivided to vascular tinnitus, muscle origin tinnitus and patulous Eustachian tube. Patients were evaluated by history taking by means of having them fill out tinnitus questionnaires and psychoacoustic questionnaires. Audiologic findings of each type of tinnitus have also been analyzed. RESULTS: Incidences of sensorineural tinnitus and somatosounds were 82.9% and 17.1% respectively. Among somatosounds, vascular tinnitus occupied 7.6%, muscle origin tinnitus, 4.3% and patulous Eustachian tube, 5.2%. The mean age of the patients with sensorineural tinnitus was older than somatosounds. Patients with muscle origin tinnitus had higher scores of tinnitus loudness, effect on life, tinnitus handicap inventory, stress and depression than those with other types of tinnitus. Overall compliance of the treatment was 66.7% and their tinnitus had been significantly improved after treatment. CONCLUSION: With the knowledge of incidence, clinical characteristics and treatment approach for each tinnitus, clinicians can be more confident in providing proper diagnosis and management of patients with tinnitus. Somatosounds, which showed relatively high incidence in this study, should not be neglected but properly treated with early diagnosis.
Compliance ; Depression ; Early Diagnosis ; Eustachian Tube ; Humans ; Incidence ; Muscles ; Psychoacoustics ; Surveys and Questionnaires ; Tinnitus