@article{WesselSchirdewan2006, author = {Wessel, Niels and Schirdewan, Alexander}, title = {Toward a prediction of sudden death in propofol-related infusion syndrome}, year = {2006}, language = {en} } @article{RiedlvanLeeuwenSuhrbieretal.2009, author = {Riedl, Maik and van Leeuwen, Peter Jan and Suhrbier, Alexander and Malberg, Hagen and Groenemeyer, Dietrich and Kurths, J{\"u}rgen and Wessel, Niels}, title = {Testing foetal-maternal heart rate synchronization via model-based analyses}, issn = {1364-503X}, doi = {10.1098/rsta.2008.0277}, year = {2009}, abstract = {The investigation of foetal reaction to internal and external conditions and stimuli is an important tool in the characterization of the developing neural integration of the foetus. An interesting example of this is the study of the interrelationship between the foetal and the maternal heart rate. Recent studies have shown a certain likelihood of occasional heart rate synchronization between mother and foetus. In the case of respiratory-induced heart rate changes, the comparison with maternal surrogates suggests that the evidence for detected synchronization is largely statistical and does not result from physiological interaction. Rather, they simply reflect a stochastic, temporary stability of two independent oscillators with time-variant frequencies. We reanalysed three datasets from that study for a more local consideration. Epochs of assumed synchronization associated with short-term regulation of the foetal heart rate were selected and compared with synchronization resulting from white noise instead of the foetal signal. Using data-driven modelling analysis, it was possible to identify the consistent influence of the heartbeat duration of maternal beats preceding the foetal beats during epochs of synchronization. These maternal beats occurred approximately one maternal respiratory cycle prior to the affected foetal beat. A similar effect could not be found in the epochs without synchronization. Simulations based on the fitted models led to a higher likelihood of synchronization in the data segments with assumed foetal-maternal interaction than in the segment without such assumed interaction. We conclude that the data-driven model-based analysis can be a useful tool for the identification of synchronization.}, language = {en} } @article{WesselSchwarzSaparinetal.2002, author = {Wessel, Niels and Schwarz, Udo and Saparin, Peter and Kurths, J{\"u}rgen}, title = {Symbolic dynamics for medical data analysis}, isbn = {3-936142-09-2}, year = {2002}, abstract = {Observational data of natural systems, as measured in medical measurements are typically quite different from those obtained in laboratories. Due to the peculiarities of these data, wellknown characteristics, such as power spectra or fractal dimension, often do not provide a suitable description. To study such data, we present here some measures of complexity, which are basing on symbolic dynamics. Firstly, a motivation for using symbolic dynamics and measures of complexity in data analysis based on the logistic map is given and next, two applications to medical data are shown. We demonstrate that symbolic dynamics is a useful tool for the risk assessment of patients after myocardial infarction as well as for the evaluation of th e architecture of human cancellous bone.}, language = {en} } @article{WesselZiehmannKurthsetal.2000, author = {Wessel, Niels and Ziehmann, Christine and Kurths, J{\"u}rgen and Meyerfeldt, Udo and Schirdewan, Alexander and Voss, Andreas}, title = {Short-term forecasting of life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias based on symbolic dynamics and finite-time growth rates}, year = {2000}, abstract = {Ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation (VT-VF) as fatal cardiac arrhythmias are the main factors triggering sudden cardiac death. The objective of this study is to find early signs of sustained VT-VF in patients with an implanted cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD). These devices are able to safeguard patients by returning their hearts to a normal rhythm via strong defibrillatory shocks; additionally, they store the 1000 beat-to-beat intervals immediately before the onset of a life-threatening arrhythmia. We study these 1000 beat-to-beat intervals of 17 chronic heart failure ICD patients before the onset of a life-threatening arrhythmia and at a control time, i.e., without a VT-VF event. To characterize these rather short data sets, we calculate heart rate variability parameters from the time and frequency domain, from symbolic dynamics as well as the finite-time growth rates. We find that neither the time nor the frequency domain parameters show significant differences between the VT-VF and the control time series. However, two parameters from symbolic dynamics as well as the finite-time growth rates discriminate significantly both groups. These findings could be of importance in algorithms for next generation ICD's to improve the diagnostics and therapy of VT-VF.}, language = {en} } @article{StepanFaberWesseletal.2006, author = {Stepan, H and Faber, R and Wessel, Niels and Wallukat, Gerd and Schultheiss, H. P. and Walther, T}, title = {Relation between circulating angiotensin II type 1 receptor agonistic autoantibodies and soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 in the pathogenesis of preeclampsia}, doi = {10.1210/Jc.2005-2698}, year = {2006}, abstract = {Context: Placental and circulatory soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1 (sFlt1) has proven to be elevated in pregnant women with preeclampsia, a disease characterized by hypertension, proteinuria, and endothelial dysfunction. Recent studies also demonstrated an autoantibody against the angiotensin II type 1 (AT1) receptor (AT1-AA) in that disease. Objective: Both factors are discussed as key players in the etiology of preeclampsia. However, it has not yet been clarified whether these two circulating factors correlate and whether synergy determines the severity of pathology. Design: AT1-AA was retrospectively determined by a bioassay and sFlt1 by an ELISA. Patients: Serum from second-trimester pregnancies with normal or abnormal uterine perfusion and in women at term with or without pregnancy pathology was analyzed. Results: Most of the preeclamptic patients were characterized by high sFlt1 levels and the presence of AT1-AA, although the agonistic effects of the antibody did not correlate with the sFlt1 concentrations (P = 0.85). Although AT1- AA was also detected in second-trimester pregnancies evidencing abnormal uterine perfusion without later pathology, sFlt1 was not significantly elevated in these pregnancies, compared with those with normal uterine perfusion. However, whereas women with abnormal perfusion and later pregnancy pathology did not differ in AT1-AA, compared with those with normal outcome, sFlt1 was significantly increased. Again, the two factors did not correlate (P = 0.15). Conclusions: We conclude that AT1-AA bioactivity and sFlt1 concentrations do not correlate, are not mutually dependent, and are thus probably involved in distinct pathogenetic mechanisms. Both factors in combination may not be causative for the early impaired trophoblast invasion and pathological uterine perfusion}, language = {en} } @article{MarwanWesselMeyerfeldtetal.2002, author = {Marwan, Norbert and Wessel, Niels and Meyerfeldt, Udo and Schirdewan, Alexander and Kurths, J{\"u}rgen}, title = {Recurrence-plot-based measures of complexity and its application to heart-rate-variability data}, year = {2002}, abstract = {The knowledge of transitions between regular, laminar or chaotic behavior is essential to understand the underlying mechanisms behind complex systems. While several linear approaches are often insufficient to describe such processes, there are several nonlinear methods which however require rather long time observations. To overcome these difficulties, we propose measures of complexity based on vertical structures in recurrence plots and apply them to the logistic map as well as to heart rate variability data. For the logistic map these measures enable us not only to detect transitions between chaotic and periodic states, but also to identify laminar states, i.e. chaos-chaos transitions. The traditional recurrence quantification analysis fails to detect the latter transitions. Applying our new measures to the heart rate variability data, we are able to detect and quantify the laminar phases before a life-threatening cardiac arrhythmia occurs thereby facilitating a prediction of such an event. Our findings could be of importance for the therapy of malignant cardiac arrhythmias.}, language = {en} } @article{WesselMarwanMeyerfeldtetal.2001, author = {Wessel, Niels and Marwan, Norbert and Meyerfeldt, Udo and Schirdewan, Alexander and Kurths, J{\"u}rgen}, title = {Recurrence quantification analysis to characterise the heart rate variability before the onset of ventricular tachycardia}, year = {2001}, abstract = {Ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation (VT) as fatal cardiac arrhythmias are the main factors triggering sudden cardiac death. The objective of this recurrence quantification analysis approach is to find early signs of sustained VT in patients with an implanted cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD). These devices are able to safeguard patients by returning their hearts to a normal rhythm via strong defibrillatory shocks; additionally, they are able to store at least 1000 beat-to-beat intervals immediately before the onset of a life-threatening arrhythmia. We study the}, language = {en} } @unpublished{KurthsVossWittetal.1994, author = {Kurths, J{\"u}rgen and Voss, A. and Witt, Annette and Saparin, P. and Kleiner, H. J. and Wessel, Niels}, title = {Quantitative analysis of heart rate variability}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus-13470}, year = {1994}, abstract = {In the modern industrialized countries every year several hundred thousands of people die due to the sudden cardiac death. The individual risk for this sudden cardiac death cannot be defined precisely by common available, non-invasive diagnostic tools like Holter-monitoring, highly amplified ECG and traditional linear analysis of heart rate variability (HRV). Therefore, we apply some rather unconventional methods of nonlinear dynamics to analyse the HRV. Especially, some complexity measures that are basing on symbolic dynamics as well as a new measure, the renormalized entropy, detect some abnormalities in the HRV of several patients who have been classified in the low risk group by traditional methods. A combination of these complexity measures with the parameters in the frequency domain seems to be a promising way to get a more precise definition of the individual risk. These findings have to be validated by a representative number of patients.}, language = {en} } @article{WesselKonvickaWeidermannetal.2004, author = {Wessel, Niels and Konvicka, Jan and Weidermann, Frank and Nestmann, S. and Neugebauer, R. and Schwarz, U. and Wessel, A. and Kurths, J{\"u}rgen}, title = {Predicting thermal displacements in modular tool systems}, issn = {1054-1500}, year = {2004}, abstract = {In the last decade, there has been an increasing interest in compensating thermally induced errors to improve the manufacturing accuracy of modular tool systems. These modular tool systems are interfaces between spindle and workpiece and consist of several complicatedly formed parts. Their thermal behavior is dominated by nonlinearities, delay and hysteresis effects even in tools with simpler geometry and it is difficult to describe it theoretically. Due to the dominant nonlinear nature of this behavior the so far used linear regression between the temperatures and the displacements is insufficient. Therefore, in this study we test the hypothesis whether we can reliably predict such thermal displacements via nonlinear temperature-displacement regression functions. These functions are estimated firstly from learning measurements using the alternating conditional expectation (ACE) algorithm and then tested on independent data sets. First, we analyze data that were generated by a finite element spindle model. We find that our approach is a powerful tool to describe the relation between temperatures and displacements for simulated data. Next, we analyze the temperature-displacement relationship in a silent real experimental setup, where the tool system is thermally forced. Again, the ACE-algorithm is powerful to estimate the deformation with high precision. The corresponding errors obtained by using the nonlinear regression approach are 10-fold lower in comparison to multiple linear regression analysis. Finally, we investigate the thermal behavior of a modular tool system in a working milling machine and get again promising results. The thermally inducedaccuracy using this nonlinear regression analysis. Therefore, this approach seems to be very useful for the development of new modular tool systems. errors can be estimated with 1-2 micrometer}, language = {en} } @article{BittmannGutschowLutheretal.2005, author = {Bittmann, Frank and Gutschow, Stephan and Luther, Sven and Wessel, Niels and Kurths, J{\"u}rgen}, title = {On the functional relationship between postural motor balance and performance at school}, year = {2005}, abstract = {In integrated medical considerations of the biological human system, both intellectual and motor performances in a similar manner are considered as a result of the function of the nervous system. Consequently, universal minimal dysfunctions of the central nervous system may lead to both intellectual and physical anomalies. Therefore, this study tests the hypothesis that there is a connection between the balance ability as a motor parameter and school success as an intellectual parameter. A postural measuring system based on the force-moment sensor technique was used to record the postural balance regulation of 773 children (circle divide 11 +/- 1 years). The school achievement of each child was determined by school grades. Data analysis was performed by linear as well as by nonlinear time series analyses. There are highly significant differences in balance regulation between good and poor pupils recognized by several linear and nonlinear parameters. Good pupils could be discriminated from pupils with bad results in learning to 80 \%. The results support the hypothesis mentioned above. One possible explanation for the poor regulation of balance in bad learners could be a deficit in the neural maturity. In future, further developments will be targeted on higher discrimination levels, possibly in order to predict school success. On the other hand, the effects of special movement exercises on the neural development in childhood will be the focus in our further work}, language = {en} }