Reliability of infrared thermography in skin temperature evaluation of wheelchair users

Temperature Asymmetry Analysis between Left and Right Wrist with Sensory and Infrared Thermography

This article reports a thermal analysis of the wrists to analyze the behavior and recovery of skin temperature after 20 min when performing a highly repetitive movement, and two thermography methods (sensory and infrared) and research groups were compared. The tests were carried out with 44 participants who performed a repetitive task for 10 min and integrated into two groups, of which 22 were trained workers from a maquiladora company and were analyzed with sensory thermography, and the other 22 were in the laboratory with infrared thermography with undergraduate students. The study area is the left and right hand, specifically the wrists. The proposed hypothesis is that people with some musculoskeletal problems have a decrease in temperature when starting repetitive tasks and thermal asymmetries, which measurements were recorded at 0, 10, 15, and 20 min after the task was finished. Findings indicate that the temperatures in both wrists behave similarly. The workers reached higher temperatures, and the centigrade degrees of asymmetry difference were also higher. The variable with influence on the temperature was fractured in the arm. After thermally analyzing the temperature behavior between the wrists of both hands, it is concluded that there is an increase in temperature after finishing a repetitive task, and it does not stabilize after 20 min. Both thermography methods observed that the asymmetries are greater than 0.5 °C, detecting the possible pathology of carpal tunnel syndrome.

Thermal image-based temperament classification by genetic algorithm and adaboost classifier

Background:

Temperament (Mizaj) determination is an important stage of diagnosis in Persian Medicine. This study aimed to evaluate thermal imaging as a reliable tool that can be used instead of subjective assessments.

Methods:

The temperament of 34 participants was assessed by a PM specialist using standardized Mojahedi Mizaj Questionnaire (MMQ) and thermal images of the wrist in the supine position, the back of the hand, and their whole face under supervision of the physician were recorded. Thirteen thermal features were extracted and a classifying algorithm was designed based on the genetic algorithm and Adaboost classifier in reference to the temperament questionnaire.

Results:

The results showed that the mean temperature and temperature variations in the thermal images were relatively consistent with the results of MMQ. Among the three body regions, the results related to the image from Malmas were most consistent with MMQ. By selecting six of the 13 features that had the most impact on the classification, the accuracy of 94.7 ± 13.0, sensitivity of 95.7 ± 11.3, and specificity of 98.2 ± 4.2 were obtained.

Conclusions:

The thermal imaging was relatively consistent with standardized MMQ and can be used as a reliable tool for evaluating warm/cold temperament. However, the results reveal that thermal imaging features may not be only main features for temperament classification and for more reliable classification, it needs to add some different features such as wrist pulse features and some subjective characteristics.

Monitoring Symptoms of Infectious Diseases: Perspectives for Printed Wearable Sensors

Infectious diseases possess a serious threat to the world's population, economies, and healthcare systems. In this review, we cover the infectious diseases that are most likely to cause a pandemic according to the WHO (World Health Organization). The list includes COVID-19, Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF), Ebola Virus Disease (EBOV), Marburg Virus Disease (MARV), Lassa Hemorrhagic Fever (LHF), Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Nipah Virus diseases (NiV), and Rift Valley fever (RVF). This review also investigates research trends in infectious diseases by analyzing published research history on each disease from 2000-2020 in PubMed. A comprehensive review of sensor printing methods including flexographic printing, gravure printing, inkjet printing, and screen printing is conducted to provide guidelines for the best method depending on the printing scale, resolution, design modification ability, and other requirements. Printed sensors for respiratory rate, heart rate, oxygen saturation, body temperature, and blood pressure are reviewed for the possibility of being used for disease symptom monitoring. Printed wearable sensors are of great potential for continuous monitoring of vital signs in patients and the quarantined as tools for epidemiological screening.

Infrared thermal imaging monitoring on hands when performing repetitive tasks: An experimental study

The monitoring of infrared thermal images is reported to analyze changes in skin temperature in the hand fingers when repetitive work is performed to know which finger has a greater risk of injury, besides, the recovery time is analyzed regarding the initial temperature and its relationship with age, sex, weight, height if practice sports, and Body Mass Index (BMI) per individual. For the above, an experimental test was carried out for 10 minutes on a repetitive operation that takes place in the telecommunications industry and 39 subjects participated in which an infrared thermal image of the dorsal and palmar part of both hands was taken in periods of 5 minutes after the 10-minute test has elapsed. The results show that none of the participants recovered their initial temperature after 10 minutes of the experimental test. In addition, it was found that there is a relationship between skin temperature and sex, and that age influences the recovery of temperature. On the other hand, the thumb, index, and middle fingers have a higher risk of injury in the analyzed task. It is concluded that performing repetitive work with all the fingers of the hand does not show that all they have the same risk of injury, besides that, not all the variables studied affect the recovery of temperature and its behavior.

Correlation between skin temperature in the lower limbs and biochemical marker, performance data, and clinical recovery scales

The aim of this study was to evaluate the correlation between tools commonly used in the detection of physiological changes, such as clinical complaints, a biochemical marker of muscle injury, and performance data during official matches, with infrared thermography, which has been commonly used in the possible tracking of musculoskeletal injuries in athletes. Twenty-two athletes from a professional soccer club (age 27.7 ± 3.93 years; BMI 24.35 ± 1.80 kg/cm²) were followed during the season of a national championship, totaling 19 matches with an interval of 7 days between matches. At each match, the athletes used a Global Positioning System (GPS) device to collect performance data. Forty-eight hours after each match, every athlete’s perception of recovery, fatigue, and pain was documented. Blood was collected for creatine kinase (CK) analysis, and infrared thermography was applied. Only athletes who presented pain above 4 in either limb were included for thermographic analysis. Each thermographic image was divided into 14 regions of interest. For statistical analysis, we included only the images that showed differences ≥ 1° C. Data normality was verified by the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test with Dallal-Wilkinson-Lilliefors correction. We used the Pearson correlation coefficient to verify the correlation between infrared thermography and the biochemical marker, performance data, and clinical recovery scales. No correlation was observed between mean skin temperature and blood CK levels, pain level, perception of recovery, and fatigue perception (r <0.2, p>0.05). Thus, infrared thermography did not correlate with CK level, pain, fatigue perception, or recovery, nor with performance variables within the field.

Intra- and Interrater Reliability of Infrared Image Analysis of Facial Acupoints in Individuals with Facial Paralysis

Infrared thermography (IRT), as a noncontact tool for temperature measurement, is widely applied in the study of acupuncture modernization. The aim of this study was to assess the intra- and interrater reliability of infrared image analysis of facial acupoints of subjects with facial paralysis and determine the factors influencing the variability of the measured values. A total of 26 patients with facial paralysis on one side, aged 26 to 53 years, participated voluntarily in the study. Facial infrared thermal images of all participants were analyzed by two trained raters at two different time points at a one-week interval. The intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) was used to determine the intra- and interrater reliability of IRT measurements. The ICC values varied depending on the analyzed acupoints. The reliability of temperature measurement ranged from moderate to excellent (intrarater, ICC ranged from 0.669 to 0.990; interrater, ICC ranged from 0.661 to 0.987). The reliability of temperature difference measurement ranged from low to excellent (intrarater, ICC ranged from 0.412 to 0.882; interrater, ICC ranged from 0.334 to 0.828). The main influencing factor of reliability is the incomplete consistency in selecting acupoint positions when repeatedly positioning the same acupoint manually. Despite low reliability of temperature difference measurement at some acupoints, some auxiliary measures can be used to reduce the error of manual positioning. Thus, infrared thermal imaging still has the potential to assist in objective and quantitative research on acupuncture.