Samsung Develops Gadget to Detect Strokes

In recent news, engineers at the Samsung Electronics Creative Lab (C-Lab) have developed an Early Detection Sensor & Algorithm Package (EDSAP) that has the ability to detect strokes.

“The resulting headset is equipped with sensors that transfer data to algorithms that allow you to observe your brainwaves on your Smartphone, tablet or upright computer to make sure you are not at risk.”

Interestingly, this device could potentially save lives by ensuring that people obtain proper medical attention in a timely manner.  Samsung claims that it’s even more efficient than hospital equipment as it analyzes brainwaves more rapidly and detects more detail due to a rubber-like ultra-conductive material.

Apparently, the headset is merely a prototype and the sensors will actually function effectively in any type of headgear such as barrettes or even eyeglasses.

There is no word on when this device could be available to the general public; however they do suggest that this technology could lead to other applications such as monitoring heart muscle activity.

Despite the fact that the device is not approved or regulated, it is refreshing that companies like Samsung are spending some of their efforts on developing gadgets other than newer models of Smartphones and Tablets.

Until then…

“A stroke, sometimes referred to as a cerebrovascular accident (CVA), cerebrovascular insult (CVI), or colloquially brain attack is the loss of brain function due to a disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This disturbance is due to either ischemia (lack of blood flow) or hemorrhage. As a result, the affected area of the brain cannot function normally, which might result in an inability to move one or more limbs on one side of the body, failure to understand or formulate speech, or a vision impairment of one side of the visual field.”

Warning Signs:

• Sudden numbness or weakness of face, arm or leg, especially on one side of the body.
  
• Sudden confusion, trouble speaking, or understanding.
  
• Sudden trouble seeing in one or both eyes.
  
• Sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination.
  
• Sudden severe headache with no known cause.

Some Statistics:

• In 2010, worldwide prevalence of stroke was 33 million, with 16.9 million people having a first stroke. 
• Stroke was the second-leading global cause of death behind heart disease, accounting for 11.13% of total deaths worldwide.
  
• Stroke is the No. 4 cause of death in the United States, killing nearly 129,000 people a year.
  
• Stroke kills someone in the U.S. about once every four minutes.
  
• African-Americans have nearly twice the risk for a first-ever stroke than white people, and a much higher death rate from stroke.
  
• Over the past 10 years, the death rate from stroke has fallen about 35 percent and the number of stroke deaths has dropped about 21 percent.
  
• About 795,000 people have a stroke every year.
  
• Someone in the U.S. has a stroke about once every 40 seconds.
  
• Stroke causes 1 of every 20 deaths in the U.S.
  
• Stroke is a leading cause of disability.
  
• Stroke is the leading preventable cause of disability.

Samsung developing wearable headset to detect strokes
Stroke
American Heart Association

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Late Night Smartphone Use Affects Productivity

Research suggests that you should put away your smartphone at the end of the work day in order to be more productive the following day.

Michigan State University business scholar, Russell Johnson and colleagues discovered that workers that tried to continue working on their smartphone past 9:00 p.m. were more worn out and less engaged during the following work day.

"Smartphones are almost perfectly designed to disrupt sleep," said Johnson, MSU assistant professor of management who acknowledges keeping his smartphone at his bedside at night. "Because they keep us mentally engaged late into the evening, they make it hard to detach from work so we can relax and fall asleep."

According to research, at least 50% of U.S. adults own a smartphone.  Many of them consider their phones to be critical workforce productivity tools; however the National Sleep Foundation indicates that only 40% of Americans get enough sleep on most nights.  Likewise, much of the self-reported data suggests that the lack of sleep can be attributed to smartphone usage for work. 

To study this phenomenon, researchers asked 82 upper-level managers to complete multiple surveys daily for two weeks.  They also surveyed 161 employees daily in a variety of occupations, such as nursing, manufacturing and dentistry etc.

All workers from all occupations indicated in their surveys that smartphone use for business purposes affected their sleep and drained their energy the following work day. The study also noted that smartphones more negatively impacted workers than watching television or using laptops and tablet computers.

“In addition to keeping people mentally engaged at night, smartphones emit "blue light" that seems to be the most disruptive of all colors of light. Blue light is known to hinder melatonin, a chemical in the body that promotes sleep.”

It seems that smartphone use late at night impacts the amount and quality of sleep we get, which affects our attention and abilities the following day.  That being said, this small study may be reason enough to turn that phone off after 9:00 p.m. to see how it might benefit us physiologically and psychologically.

Nighttime Smartphone Use Zaps Workers' Energy

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Cyberbullying Continues To Rise

Research shows that about 5 out of every 30 high school students report being victims of cyberbullying within the past year. In addition, roughly 10 of those 30 students spend about three or more hours per day playing video games or using a computer for other purposes than school work.

These numbers arise from the analysis of data gathered from the 2011 Youth Risk Behavior Survey, conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where 81% of schools and 87% of students from the 15,425 public and private high schools responded. The survey represents a national sample of high school students and takes place every two years “to monitor six types of health-risk behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of death, disability and social problems among U.S. youths”.

"Electronic bullying of high school students threatens the self-esteem, emotional well-being and social standing of youth at a very vulnerable stage of their development," said study author Andrew Adesman, MD, FAAP, chief of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics at Cohen Children's Medical Center of New York. "Although teenagers generally embrace being connected to the Web and each other 24/7, we must recognize that these new technologies carry with them the potential to traumatize youth in new and different ways."

In 2011, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention surveyed students about whether they had been bullied in the past 12 months either through email, chat rooms, instant messaging, websites and/or texting. In addition, students were questioned on the number of hours they spent playing video games or using a computer for any other purpose than school work.

Results showed that 1 in 6 high school students or 16.2% reported being a victim of electronic bullying within the past 12 months. More specifically, results revealed that 22.1% of girls reported being bullied electronically while only 10.8% of boys reported being victims of electronic bullying, making girls more than twice as likely to report being victims of cyberbullying. In addition, “whites reported being the victim of cyberbullying more than twice as frequently as blacks”.

Furthermore, thirty-one percent of high school students reported playing video games or using a computer for something other than school work for 3 or more hours each day. Interestingly, boys (35.3%) were more likely than girls (26.6%) to report playing video games for more than three hours per day.

"Electronic bullying is a very real yet silent danger that may be traumatizing children and teens without parental knowledge and has the potential to lead to devastating consequences," said principal investigator Karen Ginsburg, also at Cohen Children's Medical Center of New York. "By identifying groups at higher risk for electronic bullying, it is hoped that targeted awareness and prevention strategies can be put in place."

Unfortunately, cyberbullying will only become more and more common in society, especially teens, as technology continues to advance. More research should help to spread awareness and develop legislation that may succeed in decreasing the number of victims of cyberbullying, thereby reducing the rising number of extreme cases that often result in fatalities.

Cyberbullying Rampant Among High School Students: Nearly One-Third of Youths Also Report Playing Video/Computer Games for More Than 3 Hours a Day

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Mental Health Blog's Opinion On Technology and Mental Health

The following is an article that mentions Mental Health Blog and outlines my opinion on technology and how it relates to the mental health field.

For those interested in reading the article, please click the following link:

Medical Animation, Technology a Growing Industry

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A Smart Idea for People Living with Dementia

Imagine a home that turned its lights on or off when needed, turned taps off when left on, warned you that appliances were not shut off or remained hot, or one that encouraged you to go back to bed at night if you were caught wandering the house. Believe it or not, the University of Bath has developed this futuristic ‘smart home’, which uses cutting edge sensor, electronics and IT capabilities to revolutionize the lives of dementia sufferers.

Two nursing homes in the UK are currently using this new technology and have been for a year with great success. These trial homes will provide the necessary insight required for the conversion of regular homes to smart homes for those living on their own with dementia.

Professor Roger Orpwood, the lead scientist behind the systems' development, assures the public that this new technology seeks to solve unique problems affecting people in a way that empowers and enables them to maintain control of their own lives rather than taking away individual control.

An easy to use ‘plug in and use’ type of device will certainly prevent excessive feelings of helplessness and improve the quality of life for those living with dementia by allowing them to remain more independent. In addition, monitoring normally performed by family members will be taken over by this new system. Consequently, the extra burden on family members will be replaced with feelings of security. As well, the costs of homecare will be vastly reduced.

“The key will be to tailor them to individual requirements and ensure that they act as much like a live-in carer as possible. For example, voice-prompts can utilise the voices of relatives or friends to deliver reassuring messages, as well as to influence behaviour. The systems are also designed to be monitored remotely via computer by healthcare professionals” says Professor Orpwood.

These high tech renovations sound like a dream come true for people living with dementia, but how much could this dream home cost? Expense is an important factor as people tend to be surviving on limited income at the age where dementia typically sets in. Additionally, let’s hope this system can be transferred effortlessly to a new home since many elderly people, although independent; prefer the comforts of a condo to a large home. Nevertheless, the benefits seem far greater than any downfall or limitation of this new invention.

New 'Smart' Homes For Dementia Sufferers

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Family Day: Ontario's New Stat Holiday

Today is Ontario’s first statutory holiday which celebrates the family. Our Premier Dalton McGuinty officially introduced this holiday after some 20 years of anticipating another day off. In our society work consumes a large majority of our time and energy.

In a time of constant change and the advent of newer technology which supposedly makes our lives easier, one would think that there would be much more time for family, however this is not the case at all. There is a huge pressure on workers to climb the corporate ladder and earn more money not only to survive but to make sure our family survives well. In 2005, Statistics Canada found that 40% of stressed out men and women attributed their strain to work pressures and the next 10% attributed their source of stress to money struggles.

Although, the province of Alberta has been profiting from this holiday for nearly 20 years now, many people, especially those who aren’t able to benefit from the time off, disagree with the introduction of this new holiday. A single day off means a few hours of work lost, however this doesn’t have to imply a loss in productivity. This leave allows workers the time to revitalize and de-stress in order to better cope with tomorrow. In actuality, the break may not only sustain productivity, but manage to improve it. This day represents a long overdue concern for our society’s mental health and if we’re fortunate enough we can even spend it with family.

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