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Relationships between physiological responses and presyncope symptoms during tilting up in patients with spinal cord injury

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Abstract

This study attempted to use the eyesight range to quantify presyncope symptoms (PS), assess the relation between angle of head-up tilt, severity of injury on the American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) scale, and PS on physiological signals, and determine the notable signals that represent PS in spinal cord injury (SCI) patients. Thirty-eight quadriplegic SCI subjects were recruited, in which the mean blood pressure (MBP), oxygen saturation (SpO2), heart rate (HR), and the low-frequency/high-frequency (LF/HF) ratio of the HR variability were measured during tilting up of the head. The SpO2 and LF/HF differed significantly with the level of PS. These findings of the studied variables suggest that SpO2 and LF/HF are the physiological signals that are most sensitive to detect in PS, and could be used for the optimal biofeedback design of tilt-table training systems aimed at overcoming posture hypotension in SCI patients.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Science Council, Taiwan, Republic of China, under Grants NSC 90-2213-E-033-056 and NSC 91-2614-E-038-004.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biomedical Engineering, Chung Yuan Christian University, No.200, Chung Bei Rd., Chung Li, 32023, Taiwan

    David S. Liu, Walter H. Chang & Chien-Hung Lai

  2. Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Chang-Gung Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan

    Alice M. K. Wong

  3. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Taipei Medical University and Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan

    Shih-Ching Chen & Chien-Hung Lai

  4. Department of Electrical Engineering, Chung Yuan Christian University, Chung Li, Taiwan

    Kang-Ping Lin

Authors
  1. David S. Liu
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  2. Walter H. Chang
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  3. Alice M. K. Wong
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  4. Shih-Ching Chen
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  5. Kang-Ping Lin
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  6. Chien-Hung Lai
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Correspondence to Walter H. Chang.

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Liu, D.S., Chang, W.H., Wong, A.M.K. et al. Relationships between physiological responses and presyncope symptoms during tilting up in patients with spinal cord injury. Med Biol Eng Comput 46, 681–688 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11517-008-0322-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11517-008-0322-2

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