Designing robots for the elderly: appearance issue and beyond

This paper provides the results of three focus groups organized in the framework of the ROBADOM project, aiming at designing a service type assistive robot for the elderly with mild cognitive impairment living at home. The main objective of these focus groups was to give some recommendations to engineers in charge of the design of the robot's appearance. Results showed that although many humanoid robots were criticized by most participants, some small creative humanoid robots were appreciated. However, beyond the issue of the robot appearance, many ethical and social issues were raised. These focus groups offered an opportunity for participants to discuss the very idea of an assistive robot and to challenge some implicit preconceptions of the roboticists. Finally, we discuss how assistive robots could be designed considering the social context of the elderly and how to implicate the elderly as future end-users in the design process.     

Peripheral venous complications of a hyperosmolar (960 mOsm) nutritive mixture: The effect of heparin and hydrocortisone. A multicenter double-blinded random study in 98 patients

Peripheral intravenous nutrition with hyperosmolar solutions usually results in a high rate of venous complications. The aim of this multicenter double blind randomised study in 98 patients has been to measure: (a) tolerance by the peripheral veins being perfused with a protein-glucose-lipid nutritive mixture of 960 mOsm/l (group A, n = 33), (b) the protective effect of the additive to the nutritive mixture of either heparin: 1000 IU/1 (group B, n = 32) or heparin with hydrocortisone (5 mg/l) group C, n = 33). Tolerance by the veins was evaluated on a single vein site during a 48 h perfusion with 21 per day. The following complications: oedema, erythema, induration, thrombophlebitis led to the interruption of the perfusion. The rate of interruptions of perfusions for total venous complications and for thrombophlebitis has been respectively: at 24 h, in group A: 39 and 15%, in group B: 6 and 3%, in group C: 12 and 0%; at 48 h: in group A: 82 and 42%, in group B: 53 and 18%, in group C: 36 and 6%. Venous complication rates for 24 and 48 h were significantly lower in groups B and C (p<0.05) than in group A and there was no inter group difference between groups B and C. These results suggest that peripheral venous nutrition infusing 14.1 g of nitrogen and 8.5 MJ per day can be performed with a hyperosmolar solution of 960 mOsm/1, if that heparin be added to the nutritive mixture and the perfusion site be changed daily. Under these conditions the observed venous complications rate is equal to or less than 6% of cases.     

High flow coronary fistula closure by percutaneous coil packing

Few cases of transcatheter coronary fistula closure have been reported. High flow coronary fistulae are usually treated by surgery. This case report presents a 5.4 liters/min flow coronary fistula percutaneously closed by steel coils. This large flow needed the packing of 25 coils, 10-15 cm long, for its total occlusion. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Alkali cation transport through liposomes by the antimicrobial fusafungine and its constitutive enniatins

Fusafungine is a peptide antibiotic mixture composed of several enniatins and active against Grampositive bacteria. Ionophoric properties of fusafungine have been studied in liposomes by measuring protoncation exchange by both fluorescence and ³¹P-nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and have been compared to those of its constituent enniatin peptides. Fusafungine, as well as enniatins, transport cations through a mobile carrier mechanism selective for K⁺ vs. Na⁺ and involving two antibiotic molecules. The transport efficiencies of the various enniatins appear to be related to their hydrophobicity, in agreement with a previously proposed “sandwich” transport model. The ionophoric properties of crude fusafungine may be involved in its antibiotic action and its local therapeutic properties.     

Renal oncocytoma in a child.

Oncocytoma is an exceptionally rare renal tumor in children. We report on one case of a twelve-year-old girl treated by nephrectomy.     

Overweight treated with energy restriction and a dietary fibre supplement: a 6-month randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial

Fifty-two (41 females, 11 males) overweight patients, mean body mass index (BMI) = 29.3, were treated for 6 months in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel group design. The treatment consisted of an energy restricted diet and a dietary fibre supplement amounting to 7 g/day. After treatment the weight reduction in the fibre-treated group, 5.5 +/- 0.7 kg, was significantly higher than that of the placebo group, 3.0 +/- 0.5 kg (P = 0.005). Both groups were normotensive and comparable commencing treatment, 126.5/75.6 +/- 2.0/1.3 mm Hg versus 126.7/78.7 +/- 2.5/1.6 mm Hg. The treatment changed blood pressure non-significantly. Hunger feelings using visual analogue scales (VAS) were significantly reduced from 139.8 +/- 8.2 cm to 118.3 +/- 7.0 cm in the fibre-treated group, whereas a significant increase from 129.5 +/- 6.9 cm to 146.9 +/- 8.8 cm (P less than 0.02) was seen in the placebo group. Side-effects were predominantly gastrointestinal and equally distributed in the two groups. It is concluded that a dietary fibre supplement is of value in the management of overweight, enhancing weight loss and decreasing hunger feelings.     

Human Blood Granulocyte Macrophage Progenitors (Gm-Cfu) During Extended Field Radiation Therapy

The rate of the clonogenicity of granulocyte macro-phage forming cells (GM-CFU) in agar was analysed using mononuclear cells from the peripheral blood of cancer patients undergoing total body irradiation (TBI, 5 patients, 1.5 Gy in 15 days) or hemicorporal irradiation of the lower (LHBI, 5 patients, 15 Gy in 15 days) or upper (UHBI, 4 patients, 15 Gy in 15 days) part of the body. Although the GM-CFU level in the blood is low compared with that in the bone marrow, and shows considerable variability, the preliminary results demonstrated that in most cases the GM-CFU level was increased around the 10th day after the beginning of irradiation, followed by a return to base level within a few days, for LHBI and TBI but not for UHBI. The question of whether the observed peak for the clonogenicity was due to stem cells leaving a radiation-injured compartment of the bone marrow or to vicarious stem cells migrating from non-irradiated regions, or was the result of enhanced activity of colony-stimulating factors, remains to be investigated.