Evaluation model of individual thermal comfort based on mean skin temperature

The local skin temperatures of 22 subjects at air temperatures of 21,24,26,29 ℃ are measured,and the mean skin temperatures are calculated by ten skin temperature measuring points.The thermal comfort levels and the thermal sensations of these subjects are also investigated by a questionnaire.The Mahalanobis distance discrimination method is applied to establish the evaluation model for the thermal comfort based on the mean skin temperature.The experimental results indicate that the difference of the mean skin temperatures between the comfort level and the discomfort level is significant.Using the evaluation model,the mean skin temperature at the thermal comfort level is 32.6 to 33.7 ℃,and the thermal comfort levels of 72% of the subjects are correctly evaluated.The accuracy of the evaluation model can be improved when the effects of sex of the subject on the mean skin temperature and the thermal comfort are considered.It can be concluded that the mean skin temperature can be used as an effective physiological indicator to evaluate human thermal comfort in a steady thermal environment.

Experimental study on thermal characteristics of a double skin faade building

An experimental study of the thermal characteristics of an existing office building with double skin facade DSF were conducted in hot summer daytime in Nanjing China. The temperature distributions of the DSF and indoor environment were measured at different control modes of DSF.The results show that the energy consumption of the air conditioning system in room B with opened exterior vents a closed interior facade and an air cavity with shading was 21.0% less than that in room A with closed exterior vents a closed interior facade and air cavity without shading in 9.5 h. The temperature distributions of the DSF and indoor environment in both horizontal and vertical directions were decisively influenced by shading conditions. The usage of shading devices strengthens the stack effect on the air cavity. Compared to room A the temperature distribution in room B is more uniform with smaller fluctuations.Meanwhile the problem of overheating in the air cavity of the DSF is still present in all tested conditions.

Difference between the effects of one-site and three-site abdominal hot-stone stimulation on the skin-temperature changes of the lower limbs

To determine whether any difference exists in the skin-temperature responses of the lower limbs to hot-stone application relative to one-site and three-site abdominal application. METHODS： Twenty-five female students participated in experimental sessions after a random allocation： 14 participants received a hot-stone application on the umbilicus, superior-umbilicus, and inferior-umbilicus regions （hereafter referred to as the three-site stimulation group）; and 11 participants received the hot-stone application on the umbilicus region only （hereafter referred to as the one-site stimulation group）. Heated stones were applied for 9 min to participants in both groups. Four arbitrary frames （the lower leg, ankle, proximal foot, and distal foot regions） were created in order to observe and analyze the skin temperature of a lower limb using a thermograph. Observation periods were as follows： before hot-stone stimulation, immediately after stimulation, and 5, 10, 15, and 20 min after stimulation. RESULTS： There was a significant offset interaction of distal foot skin temperature between the groups. The left-side distal foot skin temperature increased at 15 and 20 min following the three-site abdominal hot-stone stimulation. The right-side distal foot skin temperature increased immediately and at 5, 10, 15, and 20 min following the three-site abdominal hot-stone stimulation. No significant change in distal foot skin temperature was observed following the one-site stimulation. CONCLUSION： Lower-limb skin temperature was altered following hot-stone stimulation applied to the abdomen, and the one-site stimulation and three-site stimulation yielded different distal foot skin-temperature reactions.

The seasonal foot printing mechanism of spring Arctic sea ice in the Bergen climate models

The influence of spring Arctic sea ice variability on the Pacific Decadal Oscillation （PDO） like sea surface temperature （SST） variability is established and investigated using an Atmosphere Ocean General Circulation Model （AOGCM） of the Bergen Climate Model version 2 （BCM2）. The spring Arctic sea ice variability affects the mid-latitudes and tropics through the propagation of the anomalous Eliassen-Palm （E-P） flux from the polar region to mid- and low-latitudes during boreal spring. The pathway includes anomalous upward wave activity, which propagates to the high troposphere from near the surface of the polar region, turns southward between 500 hPa and 200 hPa and extends downward between 50~N and 70~N, influencing the near surface atmospheric circulation. The alteration of the near surface atmospheric circulation then causes anomalous surface ocean circulation. These circulation changes consequently leads to the SST anomalies in the North Pacific which may persist until the following summer, named seasonal ＂foot printing＂ mechanism （SFPM）.

Preliminary Study on the Effectiveness of Different Durations of Hot Towel Application to the Back during Bed Bathing

The purpose of this study was to determine the most effective duration of hot towel application during bed bathing, based on temporal changes in skin surface temperature, towel temperature, and subjective comfort. As a secondary objective, differences in skin surface temperature and subjective comfort for hot towel application on the back and dry towel wiping alone were evaluated. For the first objective, hot towels were applied on the lower back of 20 healthy adults, for different duration (10, 15, and 20 s), with a 10-s duration found to be the most effective. For the second objective, we compared bed bathing with hot towel application to dry wiping alone, n 21 healthy adult participants. A 10-s hot towel application increased the surface temperature of the skin (+0.5℃) and provided a perceived sensation of warmth and comfort. In contrast, dry wiping significantly decreased the surface skin temperature (-0.8℃). In conclusion, hot towel application increased skin surface temperature and improved subjective warmth and comfort during bed bathing.

Research progress in the treatment of diabetic foot ulcer with platelet rich plasma

Diabetic foot ulcer,as a common complication of diabetes,is a difficult problem in clinical practice.As a new therapeutic method,platelet rich plasma has the functions of anti-inflammatory,bacteriostasis,microcirculation reconstruction,cell proliferation and differentiation,cell apoptosis reduction,peripheral nerve repair and so on.It can promote tissue repair and ulcer healing at every stage of diabetic foot ulcer.This article reviews the preparation of platelet rich plasma,the mechanism of action,the treatment of diabetic foot ulcer,the existing problems and the future development.

Impact of cold indoor thermal environmental conditions on human thermal response

To explore the thermal responses under the non-thermal equilibrium cold environmental conditions,a laboratory study was conducted in climate chamber.The local skin temperatures and thermal sensation of 20 subjects were recorded at 10 min intervals for 90 min under air temperatures of 7.4,9.1,11 and 15 °C.The results show that both local skin temperatures and mean skin temperature decrease not only with the drop of ambient air temperature but also with the exposure time.Local thermal sensation and overall the thermal sensation have the similar temperature-varying and time-varying characteristics.Predicted mean vote(PMV) model cannot correctly predict the thermal sensation under non-thermal equilibrium cold environment.The correlation between local thermal sensation and local skin temperatures shows that thermal sensation is closely related to skin temperature.Skin temperature is an effective indicator of thermal sensation.A linear relationship model between overall thermal sensation and mean skin temperature,considering both ambient temperature and exposure time,was established in the non-thermal equilibrium cold environment,which makes the evaluation of thermal sensation more objective.

Numerical Simulation of Fluid and Heat Transfer in a Biological Tissue Using an Immersed Boundary Method Mimicking the Exact Structure of the Microvascular Network

The aim of this study is to develop a model of fluid and heat transfer in a biological tissue taking into account the exact structure of the related microvascular network,and to analyze the influence of structural changes of such a network induced by diabetes.A cubic region representing local skin tissue is selected as the computational domain,which in turn includes two intravascular and extravascular sub-domains.To save computational resources,the capillary network is reduced to a 1D pipeline model and embedded into the extravascular region.On the basis of the immersed boundary method(IBM)strategy,fluid and heat fluxes across a capillary wall are distributed to the surrounding tissue nodes by a delta function.We consider both steady and periodic blood pressure conditions at the entrances of the capillary network.Under steady blood pressure conditions,both the interstitial fluid pressure and tissue temperature around the capillary network are larger than those in other places.When the periodic blood pressure condition is considered,tissue temperature tends to fluctuate with the same frequency of the forcing,but the related waveform displays a smaller amplitude and a certain time(phase)delay.When the connectivity of capillary network is diminished,the capacity of blood redistribution through the capillary network becomes weaker and a subset of the vessel branches lose blood flow,which further aggravates the amplitude attenuation and time delay of the skin temperature fluctuation.

Skin Sensitive Difference of Human Body Sections under Clothing— Smirnov Test of Skin Surface Temperatures' Dynamic Changing

Skin sensitive difference of human body sections under clothing is the theoretic foundation of thermal insulation clothing design. By a new method of researching on clothing comfort perception, the skin temperature live changing procedure of human body sections affected by the same cold stimulation is inspected. Furthermore with the Smirnov test the skin temperatures dynamic changing patterns of main human body sections are obtained.

Features of sea ice motion observed with ice buoys from the central Arctic Ocean to Fram Strait

Using six ice-tethered buoys deployed in 2012,we analyzed sea ice motion in the central Arctic Ocean and Fram Strait.The two-hourly buoy-derived ice velocities had a magnitude range of 0.010.80 m s 1,although ice velocities within the Arctic Basin were generally less than 0.4 m s 1.Complex Fourier transformation showed that the amplitudes of the sea ice velocities had a non-symmetric inertial oscillation.These inertial oscillations were characterized by a strong peak at a frequency of approximately 2 cycle d 1 on the Fourier velocity spectrum.Wind was a main driving force for ice motion,characterized by a linear relationship between ice velocity and 10-m wind speed.Typically,the ice velocity was about 1.4%of the 10-m wind speed.Our analysis of ice velocity and skin temperature showed that ice velocity increased by nearly 2%with each 10℃increase in skin temperature.This was likely related to weakened ice strength under increasing temperature.The ice-wind turning angle was also correlated with 10-m wind speed and skin temperature.When the wind speed was less than 12 m s 1 or skin temperature was less than 30℃,the ice-wind turning angle decreased with either increasing wind speed or skin temperature.Clearly,sea ice drift in the central Arctic Ocean and Fram Strait is dependent upon seasonal changes in both temperature and wind speed.

Skin Sensitive Difference of Human Body Sections under Clothing - Multiple Analysis of Skin Surface Temperature Changes

A new researching method on clothing comfort perception is developed.By it the skin surface temperature changes and subjective psychological perception of human body sections stimulated by the same cold stimulation are studied.With the multiple comparison analysis method the changing laws of skin temperature of main human body sections is obtained.

Effects of Outdoor Thermal Environment upon the Human Responses

In a summer outdoor space, the influence of short-wave length solar radiation on the human body is strongly apparent, heat is retained in the body, and the risk of heat disorders such as heat stroke increases. To avoid this, it is essential to seek shade to avoid the influence of short-wave length solar radiation. In addition, natural ground surfaces such as green spaces and water surfaces are useful in reducing the air temperature. It is indispensable to consider climate mitigation effect of outdoor space. The purpose of this study is to clarify the influence of the thermal environment of an outdoor space on the human body in rural and suburban regions where paddy fields remain. Subject experiments were conducted to examine the relationship between the thermal environment evaluation index enhanced conduction-corrected modified effective temperature (ETFe) in an outdoor space and the physiological and psychological responses of the human body. Experiment sites were selected with consideration for the natural ground surface such as bare ground where the surface is gravel or soil;paved ground such as concrete, asphalt or blocks;green areas covered in plants;and water surfaces, as well as the sky factor due to buildings or trees etc. and the proportion of the solid angle of components of greenery and water etc. comprising the solid angle of the total celestial sphere. A ground surface feature with a high heat capacity may promote sensation of hot and deteriorate the thermal sensation. A landscape of thick vegetation with a high green factor may have a strong feeling of confinement, which can make it somewhat hot and somewhat uncomfortable thermal environment due to the sense of stagnation. Compared with the urban environment, it is conceivable that the difference in the perceptual environment, whereby it is subconsciously assumed to be a comfortable thermal environment, had an effect in the rural and suburban regional environment, resulting in an ETFe lower than the upper limit of comfort in a summer urban environment.

Traditional Chinese Medicine for Treatment of Apatinib-induced Hand and Foot Skin Reaction:A case report

Squamous cell carcinoma arising at maxillary sinus is a rare neoplasm, characterized by aggressive growth pattern and glooming prognosis. A 78-year-old woman presented with left maxillary sinus carcinoma. The patient received four courses of chemotherapy after surgery in our center. Eight months after treatment, the patient experienced local progress, severe gastrointestinal reactions and asthenia. Then apatinib was used as third-line treatment. Good curative effect was achieved with 250 mg apatinib per day, while adverse reaction such as hand and foot skin reaction affected the quality of her life. Traditional Chinese medicine exhibits good results and no obvious side effects in relieving hand and foot skin reaction. Traditional Chinese medicine is Chinese treasure, it remains challenging, and further investigations are needed.

Multikinase inhibitor-associated hand-foot skin reaction as a predictor of outcomes in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma treated with sorafenib

AIM To investigate the relationship between the onsets of multikinase inhibitor(MKI)-associated hand-foot skin reaction(HFSR) and prognosis under intervention by pharmacists after the introduction of sorafenib.METHODS We conducted a retrospective study involving 40 patients treated with sorafenib. Intervention by pharmacists began at the time of treatment introduction and continued until the appearance of symptomatic exacerbation or non-permissible adverse reactions. We examined the relationship between MKI-associated HFSR and overall survival(OS) after the initiation of treatment.RESULTS The median OS was 10.9 mo in the MKI-associated HFSR group and 3.4 mo in the no HFSR group, showing a significant difference in multivariate analysis. A multivariate analysis of the time to treatment failure indicated that the intervention by pharmacists and MKI-associated HFSR were significant factors. The median cumulative dose and the mean medication possession ratio were significantly higher in the intervention group than in the non-intervention group. A borderline significant difference was observed in terms of OS in this group.CONCLUSION Intervention by pharmacists increased drug adherence. Under increased adherence, MKI-associated HFSR was an advantageous surrogate marker. Intervention by healthcare providers needs to be performed for adequate sorafenib treatment.

Skin Temperature and Body Surface Section in Non-Uniform and Asymmetric Outdoor Thermal Environment

In indoor environments and shady outdoor environments, there is little influence of short-wavelength solar radiation, so a strikingly non-uniform and asymmetric environment is not formed. In outdoor sunny environment, however, shaded areas occur even for the same site of the body, and a remarkable difference in skin temperature is considered to occur under the influence of the short-wavelength solar radiation. The purpose of this study is to clarify the influence of the non-uniform and asymmetric thermal radiation of short-wavelength solar radiation in outdoor environment on the division of the body surface section and the calculation of the mean skin temperature. The skin temperature of the front of the coronal surface, which was facing the sun and where the body received direct short-wavelength solar radiation, and the skin temperature of the rear of the coronal surface, which was in the shadow and did not receive direct short-wavelength solar radiation were respectively measured. The feet, upper arm, forearm, hand and lower leg, which are susceptible to short-wavelength solar radiation in a standing posture, had a noticeable difference in skin temperature between sites in the sun and in shade. The mean skin temperature of sites facing the sun was significantly higher than the mean skin temperature of those in the shade.

Using Earth’s Moon as a Testbed for Quantifying the Effect of the Terrestrial Atmosphere

In the past, the planetary radiation balance served to quantify the atmospheric greenhouse effect by the difference between the globally averaged near-surface temperature of and the respective effective radiation temperature of the Earth without atmosphere of resulting in . Since such a “thought experiment” prohibits any rigorous assessment of its results, this study considered the Moon as a testbed for the Earth in the absence of its atmosphere. Since the angular velocity of Moon’s rotation is 27.4 times slower than that of the Earth, the forcing method, the force-restore method, and a multilayer-force-restore method, used in climate modeling during the past four decades, were alternatively applied to address the influence of the angular velocity in determining the Moon’s globally averaged skin (or slab) temperature, . The multilayer-force-restore method always provides?the highest values for , followed by the force-restore method and the forcing method, but the differences are marginal. Assuming a solar albedo of , a relative emissivity , and a solar constant of and applying the multilayer-force-restore method yielded and for the Moon. Using the same values for α, ε, and S, but assuming the Earth’s angular velocity for the Moon yielded and quantifying the effect of the terrestrial atmosphere by . A sensitivity study for a solar albedo of commonly assumed for the Earth in the absence of its atmosphere yielded , , and . This means that the atmospheric effect would be more than twice as large as the aforementioned difference of 33 K. To generalize the findings, twelve synodic months (i.e., 354 Earth days) and 365 Earth days, where , a Sun-zenith-distance dependent solar albedo, and the variation of the solar radiation in dependence of the actual orbit position and the tilt angle of the corresponding rotation axis to the ecliptic were considered. The case of Moon’s true angular velocity yielded and . Whereas Earth’s 27.4 times higher angular velocity yielded , and . In both cases, the effective radiation temperature is ,?because the computed global albedo is . Thus, the effective radiation temperature yields flawed results when used for quantifying the atmospheric greenhouse effect.

Expression of Genes Affecting Skin Coloration and Sugar Accumulation in Apple Fruits at Ripening Stages in High Temperatures

High temperature is one of the most important environmental factors that affect the successful cultivation of apple (Malus × domestica Borkh). The expression of genes related with anthocyanin synthesis and sugar accumulation by high temperature treatment was investigated in the fruits of “Fuji” apple at different developmental stages in different temperature conditions through real- time PCR. In the initial ripening stages in fruits, there was high expression of genes associated with fruit ripening, flavonoid compound accumulation, and coloration in high temperatures. Expression of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase, chalcone synthase, flavone 3-hydrogenase, and malate dehydrogenase genes increased gradually in initial ripening stages, while sharply reduced at 24 hr after treatment. In addition, there was no significant difference in the expression of all temperature treatments in late ripening stages. In the further work, investigation of expression levels of various genes could be conducted in the level of transcriptomes from fruits at the early stages to get meaningful information of ripening metabolism in apples in high temperatures.

Usefulness of a Newly-Developed Device, the Power Tree^(■), for Body Massage: Evidence from a Medical Evaluation

We investigated the effectiveness and usefulness of a novel tool: the Power Tree?, for body massage in 10 healthy female volunteers (age range, 24 - 55 years;mean age, 40.5 years) by evaluating several dermatological and psychological parameters, such as the amount of dermal collagen, the skin temperature, the level of salivary amylase and the scores on the State-Trait Anxiety Index (STAI). After 60-minute Power Tree?-mediated body massage, both the dermal collagen score determined from the DermaLab? images and skin temperature measured by infrared thermography were found to have increased significantly in several body sites compared to those before the treatment (p < 0.01 and p < 0.001, respectively). Although the level of stress estimated by the amount of amylase in the saliva was not significantly different pre- and post-procedure (p = 0.3), the treatment significantly reduced both the state anxiety (SA) and trait anxiety (TA) scores on the STAI (p < 0.001 for the SA, p < 0.01 for the TA). The treatment with this device was smoothly performed without any burden on the therapists during the present study. These data suggest that the newly-developed device is a powerful and useful tool for reflexology when used for full body massage therapy, and massage therapy using this device may produce beneficial, physiological effects as well as psychosocial improvements.

Preliminary observation on effect of cupping on the skin surface temperature of patients with back pain

Objective To preliminarily observe the effects of cupping on localized skin temperature of patients with back pain.Methods A total of 43 patients with back pain were included in this study.They were treated with medium-sized cups with a volume of 260 mL The randomly selected Xinshu（心俞 BL 15）on one side（37 cases） was given cupping treatment while that on the other side as the control.And Shenshu（肾俞 BL 23）（6 cases） was treated in the same way.The thermal infrared imager was used to record the changes in localized skin temperature before and after cupping（for 10 minutes）,and then comparison was made with that of the control side.Results After cupping,the localized skin temperature fell and then rose.When the cup was removed after retaining for 10 minutes,the localized skin temperature was（0.4±0.9） ℃（P=0.004） lower than that before cupping;10 minutes after cupping off,the localized skin temperature was（0.4±1.1） ℃（P=0.016） higher than that before cupping while（0.8±0.9） ℃ higher than that when cupping off.The skin surface temperature on the control side declined steadily.Conclusion After cupping treatment,the localized skin temperature fell and then rose while that of the control side declined steadily.It might be related to therapeutic effects.

A New Kind of Biomaterials—Bullfrog Skin Collagen

Pepsin-soluble collagen was prepared from bullfrog skin and partially characterized. This study revealed interesting differences, such as molecular weight, amino acid composition, denaturation temperature (Td), in the frog skin collagen when compared to the known vertebrate collagens. This study gives hints that bullfrog skin can be a potential, safe alternative source of collagen from cattle for use in various fields.