Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Medical Device With Own Online Simulator
Cook Medical, in order to provide clinicians with basic training on using the company's Ciaglia Blue Dolphin Balloon Percutaneous Tracheostomy Introducer, created a follow-along online simulator of the procedure.
Product page: Ciaglia Blue Dolphin ...
Flashback: Blue Dolphin Dives into Trachea
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Thursday, October 30, 2008
Blue Dolphin Dives into Trachea
Cook Medical is releasing its Ciaglia Blue Dolphin device for an elective percutaneous dilational tracheostomy (PDT), which combines balloon dilation and tracheal tube insertion into one step and promises easier and safer delivery.
From the press release:
The balloon minimizes pressure on the anterior tracheal wall and delivers an even and controlled radial dilation. This significantly reduces the downward force needed to create a tracheal stoma compared to traditional PDTs. Additionally, the device may minimize bleeding, ring fractures and posterior wall perforations by eliminating the need for a dilator to advance back and forth in the trachea, and by limiting soft tissue dissection to a simple skin incision. Due to the "elastic memory" of tissue, the stoma tightly contracts around the tracheostomy tube once the procedure is complete, providing the needed seal and tamponade effect to help prevent bleeding.
From the product page:
The set consists of a balloon-tipped catheter loading dilator assembly; Cook inflation device; wire guide; 18-gage introducer needle; 18-gage TFE sheath needle; needle holder cup; 14 French dilator; large full-body drape with clear plastic window; gauze pads; disposable syringe; measuring tape; disposable safety scalpel; and lubricating jelly. A separate, sterile tracheostomy tube is also included in an optional set.The tray contains the set components and other items necessary for a bedside procedure, including lidocaine; 22-, 25-, and 18-gage needles; double swivel connector; Chlorhexidine/alcohol prep solution; suture with needle; CSR wrap; and prep tray. A separate, sterile tracheostomy tube is also included in an optional tray.
Press release: Cook Medical Introduces Ciaglia Blue Dolphin™ Percutaneous Dilational Tracheostomy Device...
Product page: Ciaglia Blue Dolphin...
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Friday, October 24, 2008
Innovative Hearing Aid from Starkey Labs Takes Awards
The Zon Hearing Aid by Los Angeles industrial designer Stuart Karten for Eden Prairie, MN-based Starkey Laboratories has been honored with two prestigious design awards: the People's Design Award, presented by the Smithsonian's Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, as well as Spark Design Award.
Developed with Starkey’s evidence-based design approach, Zōn blends world-class technology with beautiful design, ultimately providing high levels of acceptance and satisfaction for patients. Built out of moisture-resistant material, Zōn was designed to minimize the number of touchpoints on wearers’ skin with a curved, elegant shape. Even the color options were carefully considered; Starkey worked with respected cosmetics researchers to develop the sophisticated hair and skin-tone color palette, designed to complement and match natural skin tones and hair.Zōn looks great on the outside, but it also provides best-in-class performance through the cutting-edge technology inside. Harnessing the power of BluWaveTM Signal Processing, Zōn virtually eliminates feedback with Active Feedback Intercept (AFI) and delivers the best performing directional system on the market with Directional Speech Detector (DSD), which boasts industry-leading free-field and KEMAR DIs and the lowest operational noise floor available, making speech more audible in difficult listening situations. Additionally, hearing care professionals can quickly and accurately conduct real-ear measurements with Integrated Real Ear Measurement (IREM). IREM provides the most precise fit possible, helping professionals counsel patients, reducing the number of adjustments needed for a comfortable fit and better addressing the challenges hearing aid users are facing in their environments.
Spark is a design competition focusing on change – specifically change for the better. The competition considers criteria including sustainability, suitability, context, inventiveness, process, universality and beauty. The Spark Design Awards are intended to encourage people to experience design in new ways and improve our world. Designers, art directors, ad agencies, manufacturers and other creative people and institutions have the opportunity to submit work for the Spark Design Awards.
Product brochure is here...
Product page: Zōn Series...
Press releases: Starkey Laboratories Wins Spark Design Award for Zōn™ (.pdf); Zon Hearing Aid Wins the 2008 People's Design Award...
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Tuesday, September 30, 2008
A CRIC In The Neck!
Here's an interesting product we haven't seen before. The Complete Rapid Illuminated Cricothyrotomy (CRIC) Kit is the latest life-saving medical product from Canadian company Pyng Medical, the developers of FAST1® Intraosseous Infusion System, that we profiled yesterday. Although FDA approval is pending, the new CRIC Kit is expected to provide significant improvements in speed, efficacy and safety to the life-saving medical procedure of cricothyrotomy.
The CRIC Kit is being developed with support from the US Department of Defense (DOD) for the purpose of equipping US military medics and physicians. Currently, cricothyrotomy requires the use of at least three distinct medical instruments: scalpel, retractor, insertion tube, and in many cases, a light source. This can be difficult enough to manage in a modern ER, not to mention the extreme conditions that exist on the battlefield, where an obstructed airway is the second leading cause of death (after exsanguination).
CRIC Cricothyrotomy Kit product page and instructions...
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Tuesday, September 23, 2008
The BeamPath NEURO System: First Flexible CO2 Laser Scalpel
OmniGuide, Inc. (Cambridge, MA) has recently announced their new BeamPath NEURO™ flexible CO2 laser for neurosurgery. According to the company, it is the first flexible CO2 laser scalpel out there. The big idea is to allow neurosurgeons to perform precise dissection, cutting, debulking, and microvascular coagulation using a hand-held, no-touch instrument, that is portable and flexible.
Robert F. Spetzler, M.D., F.A.C.S., Director, Barrow Neurological Institute, J.N. Harbor Chairman of Neurological Surgery in Phoenix, is quoted in the press release: "Neurosurgeons have long realized the benefits of CO2 lasers for microsurgery, but the traditional means of delivering the laser were too rigid and unwieldy for microsurgery, limiting lasers' use in our specialty, A flexible CO2 laser is ideal for removing small tumors that are in close proximity to critical structures, including very sensitive areas of the brain and spinal cord, as well as for tumors in deep holes, when the most precise, no-touch surgical tool is essential. A flexible CO2 laser is ideal for removing small tumors that are in close proximity to critical structures, including very sensitive areas of the brain and spinal cord, as well as for tumors in deep holes, when the most precise, no-touch surgical tool is essential."
The BeamPath NEURO system is designed to be used for various central nervous system (CNS) procedures, including intracranial tumor reserctions, spine tumor surgeries and transnasal pituitary procedures.
More about the company's proprietary BeamPath™ technology:
OmniGuide’s BeamPath™ photonic bandgap fibers are the world’s first solid state structure-based transmitters. Within each fiber, over forty microscopic layers of alternating glass and polymer form a reflective system known as a Bragg diffraction grating. The wavelength of light transmitted by this structure is a function of the thickness of the glass/ polymer bi-layers, which can be easily varied. Thus the BeamPath™ fibers can be scaled to channel different wavelengths of light. This approach represents a new paradigm in the field of light transmission, and resolves all of the limitations inherent in conventional fiber optics.OmniGuide has also mastered a manufacturing process through which semiconductor/ polymer multi-layers can be manufactured in a scalable manner, to tolerances that were previously seen only in the semiconductor industry. The manufacturing breakthrough that made this possible is a system of drawing out a foot-long “preform” with millimeter-thick layers, into hundreds of meters of fiber with micron-thick layers.
Press release: OmniGuide Introduces The BeamPath Neuro(TM): A CO2 Laser Fiber for Brain And Spine Surgery...
Product page: BeamPath NEURO System...
Product brochure: BeamPath NEURO System... (.pdf)
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Friday, September 19, 2008
Tools That Bend So You Don't Have To
ENTrigue Surgical out of San Antonio, Texas is releasing a line of products based on its bending technology that allows tools like hemostats to bend around corners.
From the SerpENT™ Articulating Instruments product page:
As otolaryngologists strive for increasingly less invasive techniques, the desire for "instruments that bend at will" has emerged as a key unmet need. Further, as endoscopes widen the surgical field of view, traditional rigid instruments have limited the ability to reach visible anatomy.ENTrigue Surgical has harnessed a unique technology platform to develop a new class of instruments focused on enabling the least invasive techniques for sinus surgery. For the first time, surgeons can truly reach around corners and perform precise dissection.
Over 220 degrees of articulation with seven locking positions.
Multiple tip configurations include thru-cutters and graspers.
Ultra-sharp cutting edges and precise grasping tips enable meticulous dissection.
Designed to withstand the rigors of standard cleaning and sterilization procedures.
Press release: ENTrigue Surgical, Inc. Announces Product Commercialization...
Product page: SerpENT™ Articulating Instruments...
Bottom image: (left): Entering the maxillary ostea; (center): Dissecting the lateral aspect of the maxillary sinus; (right): Dissecting along the medial wall of the maxillary sinus
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Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Hearing Aid "Grows" With Child
Siemens has developed a reprogrammable hearing aid designed to adapt along with the hearing changes of the growing child.
From Siemens:
Fitting a hearing instrument for young children with hearing loss is one of the most difficult tasks faced by audiologists. Children born with impaired hearing can only communicate to a very limited degree, and they also have different auditory perception than adults who have suffered gradual loss of hearing. In the latter case, the brain loses its capacity to perceive high frequencies. Children with hearing loss, by contrast, need the full spectrum of sounds in order to “learn how to hear.”With the help of the latest findings from the field of pediatric audiology, Siemens Audiology has now developed a hearing instrument that meets such complex requirements. In addition to covering a considerably extended frequency range, the Explorer 500 P also boasts numerous functions such as speech-sensitive noise suppression and automatic situation detection, so the instrument can adapt to the constantly changing hearing requirements of a growing child.
In the framework of the Connexx adjustment software, Siemens has integrated ClinicalFit, which features a special workflow for children that automatically selects the full range of typical settings for each age level. To fit the instrument, the technician needs only to connect the device to a computer, enter the wearer’s age, the hearing impairment, and the required functions, and the software automatically does the rest — such as activating a directional microphone or a direct audio connectivity to wireless transmission systems used in kindergarten or school, for example. The latter selectively transmit a teacher’s words and help to suppress ambient noise.
Press release: A Hearing Aid for Children That Adapts With Age...
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Monday, September 15, 2008
Brain Stem Meets MARVEL
NASA and its Jet Propulsion Laboratory are working on developing an auxiliary endoscope, dubbed MARVEL (Multi-Angle and Rear Viewing Endoscopic tooL), an instrument that will function essentially as a dental mouth mirror designed for endosinus surgeries, as well as for skull base and neurosurgical procedures.
NASA explains:
A conventional endoscope provides mostly a frontal view — that is, a view along its longitudinal axis and, hence, along a straight line extending from an opening through which it is inserted. The MARVEL could be inserted through the same opening as that of the conventional endoscope, but could be adjusted to provide a view from almost any desired angle. The MARVEL camera image would be displayed, on the same monitor as that of the conventional endoscopic image, as an inset within the conventional endoscopic image. For example, while viewing a tumor from the front in the conventional endoscopic image, the surgeon could simultaneously view the tumor from the side or the rear in the MARVEL image, and could thereby gain additional visual cues that would aid in precise three-dimensional positioning of surgical tools to excise the tumor. Indeed, a side or rear view through the MARVEL could be essential in a case in which the object of surgical interest was not visible from the front.The conceptual design of the MARVEL exploits the surgeon’s familiarity with endoscopic surgical tools. The MARVEL would include a miniature electronic camera and miniature radio transmitter mounted on the tip of a surgical tool derived from an endo-scissor (see figure). The inclusion of the radio transmitter would eliminate the need for wires, which could interfere with manipulation of this and other surgical tools. The handgrip of the tool would be connected to a linkage similar to that of an endo-scissor, but the linkage would be configured to enable adjustment of the camera angle instead of actuation of a scissor blade.
It is envisioned that thicknesses of the tool shaft and the camera would be less than 4 mm, so that the camera-tipped tool could be swiftly inserted and withdrawn through a dime-size opening. Electronic cameras having dimensions of the order of millimeters are already commercially available, but their designs are not optimized for use in endoscopic brain surgery. The variety of potential endoscopic, thoracoscopic, and laparoscopic applications can be expected to increase as further development of electronic cameras yields further miniaturization and improvements in imaging performance.
To further understand how the device will function in clinical settings, go ahead and check out the white technical paper published in the latest NASA Technical Briefs: Adjustable-Viewing-Angle Endoscopic Tool for Skull Base and Brain Surgery... (registration required)
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Monday, July 28, 2008
Force-feedback Offerings from Haption
Via a press release from Virtalis Ltd , a consultancy out of Manchester, UK, we learn about a French company Haption S.A. that is trying to expand the use of its haptic technologies in the medical market, such as for surgical training, rehab, etc.
According to Virtalis,
The Haption range encompasses a small, desktop device with a translational workspace within a sphere of diameter of 120 mm and rotational workspace of 35O in three directions. Top of the range is the Virtuose 6D35-45, which was designed for the 1:1 scale manipulation of virtual objects and has a massive transational workspace up to a sphere of diameter of 450 mm and can exert forces up to 35 N. All Haption products can be easily integrated into Virtalis StereoWorks installations, so that the Haption device is linked to 3D stereo projection in a fully tracked virtual environment.Aside from engineering applications, Haption is finding new customers in the kinehaptic field where patients overcome their injuries by practicing their fine motor skills. Surgeons who need to stay within a tightly controlled operating envelope represent another important market for haptics. So do nuclear engineers, whose complex operations when dealing with several robots carrying out specialized dismantling and decommissioning work, have found themselves benefiting greatly from virtual force feedback. In hazardous environments, being able to create the physics of an object, practice manipulating it, optimize the movement path and then record that path, has proved to be invaluable.
If you want to check out the brochure for the Virtuose 6D35-45 device, here it is (.pdf)...
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Thursday, July 17, 2008
Don't Want to Get Lost in Sinuses? Use Your iNtellect
Stryker Leibinger GmbH & Co KG, a Freiburg, Germany subsidiary of Kalamazoo based Stryker (the most pleasant name in the business), is responsible for the development and manufacture of this cool ENT navigation system, called iNtellect. 
Many of our readers have probably seen Stryker's navigation systems commonly used for total knee replacements. The ENT system is not only significantly more complex, it has to be more intuitive, as the cranial anatomy with all its sinuses, and nerves, and arteries and veins, is much more intricate.
The system's navigation coordinates are provided by the Patient Registration Mask, a device that was just recently given the 2008 Medical Design Excellence Award.
More from the product page:
The software is the critical link between the Navigation System and the surgeon performing computer assisted Sinus surgery and other ENT procedures. The iNtellect ENT Navigation software is the result of years of experience that Stryker software engineers have in creating surgical planning software with familiar, easy-to-use interfaces.Key advantages include:
Precise Smart instrumentation
Available laptop navigation system and optional planning station
Unique perspective view to see 3-D image of patient anatomy
Advanced auto segmentation capabilities for tumors, skin, brain, vasculature, ventricle and other volumes of interest
Advanced features such as automatic image fusion between multiple CT, MR, CTA, MRA, fMRI,and PET images by one mouse click
Fully automated registration
Stryker camera technology
To learn more, check out this product brochure (.pdf) or head to the product page...
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Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Sialo Dilatation Balloons Given Green Light in US
Sialo Technology, a company out of Ashkelon, Israel, has been given approval by the FDA to market its balloons for salivary gland endoscopy when removing gland stones. Aren't you gland?
Features of the device from the product page:
Emphasis is on the balloon's pushability, in contrast to other balloons, where emphasis is on flexibility. Available in high pressure levels, 16 bar. Available in 6 balloon lengths. Maximum comfort for the patient: The presence of the drain is barely felt. The balloon is inserted into the instrument channel of the set manufactured by:Polydiagnost Germany, Karl Storz Germany, and Millennium Devices U.S.A
The device already received the CE Mark in Europe.
More at Globes...
Product page: Sialo Dilatation Balloon ...
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Tuesday, April 29, 2008
More Good News for The Baha System, a Bone Anchored (Osseointegrated) Implant
At the recently concluded 10th International Conference on Cochlear Implants and Other Implantable Auditory Technologies held in San Diego, California on April 10 - 12, a group of investigators from the Loyola University Chicago presented generally positive clinical results from the study of patients implanted with the Baha® bone conduction implant from Cochlear. 
The device is not a new one. It was cleared by the FDA in 1996 as a treatment for conductive and mixed hearing loss. (At that time, the device was made by Entific Medical Systems, which was later acquired by Cochlear.) And since 2002, the device has been approved by the FDA for the treatment of unilateral sensorineural hearing loss.
A quick look at Baha system:
The Baha system utilizes direct bone conduction, which allows the bone to transfer sound to a functioning cochlea – thereby bypassing the middle ear. This unique hearing treatment is the only system of its kind cleared by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat hearing loss.One reason the Baha system works so well is due to its simple design. The Baha system combines a sound processor with an abutment and a small titanium implant. The implant is placed behind the non-functioning ear. Surgery is minor, and Baha recipients report a wide range of advantages over other hearing devices.
The Baha system, which is based on bone conduction, utilizes a titanium implant, which is placed in the skull bone behind the ear. An abutment connects the sound processor with the implant in the bone. This creates direct (percutaneous) bone conduction. In contrast, traditional bone conductors connect indirectly to the bone through unbroken skin (transcutaneous) and work by exerting pressure against the skull.
Direct bone conduction, provided by Baha, gives improved access to sound when compared to traditional bone conductors since sound is not weakened when passing through the skin.
Product page: The Baha® system...
Flashbacks: Medgadgeteer On The Frontier
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Wednesday, April 23, 2008
FDA Clears ENTity NasoView
ENTity™ NasoView, a flexible nasopharyngoscope from OPTIM Inc., a Sturbridge, Massachusetts firm, has been 510(k)'ed by the FDA for marketing, according to a press release obtained by Medgadget. It was originally introduced back in September 2007 at American Academy of Otolaryngology -- Head & Neck Surgery (AAO-HNSF) Foundation's Annual Meeting. The endoscope is LED powered, and is extremely mobile:
With its self contained, patented LED-Light Engine, ENTity stands alone in the world of flexible endoscopy. By freeing the physician from the “tug” of light guides, external light sources and the need for AC/DC wall power, ENTity provides unparalleled portability and ease of use. ENTity, which has been several years in the making, is the brightest and lightest LED-illuminated endoscope available. This is all provided in a uniquely compact, ergonomically superior package.ENTity can also be coupled to any standard video camera system or for better video imaging, such as Optim’s VideoDirect system, which will also be on display...
Other features include:
Less than 11 oz total weight
High intensity LED light source (5500 Kelvin/natural sunlight quality) for exceptional visibility
Eliminates need for separate external light sources and cables
Sleek Fully sealed and completely immersible handle
Variable light intensity; no bulb replacements required
3-year warranty on LED Light Engine
Two-way distal tip articulation, +/- 135 degree
3.6 mm insertion shaft diameter - 30 cm insertion shaft working length
"B" style eyepiece that can use standard camera coupler
Lithium Ion rechargeable battery
May be used left or right handed, thumb or finger actuated
Product page: ENTity NasoView...
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Thursday, April 17, 2008
DUET Electric-Acoustic Hybrid Hearing Aid Undergoing US Trials
UT Southwestern Medical Center is currently conducting a trial of the DUET Electric-Acoustic System from MED-EL Corp., a hearing aid that combines a cochlear implant with a standard in-ear unit.
Initial studies on the hybrid device suggest there is a synergistic effect achieved by maintaining the natural hearing and coupling it with the cochlear implant, particularly for distinguishing speech in noisy environments. The device both amplifies low frequencies and electronically stimulates middle and high frequencies.The implant is specifically designed with a thin electrode to occupy less space in the inner ear. It is implanted by special surgical techniques to preserve natural hearing.
"What patients can hope to get from the investigational device is a significant improvement in the ability to understand speech, especially in a noisy situation," said Dr. Peter Roland, chairman of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at UT Southwestern.
The device is made by MED-EL Corp., which conducts the initial patient screening for the trial. The device is still investigational, so all of the potential risks are not known, Dr. Roland said. The most common serious complication is loss of what hearing is left in the ear that receives the implant. The opposite ear is unaffected. Significant hearing loss has occurred in 10 percent to 15 percent of recipients to date.
Press release: UT Southwestern testing new hybrid hearing device combining advantages of hearing aids, implants ...
Product page: The DUET speech processor...
Flashback: MED-EL Corporation's new Cochlear Implant System
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Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Lyric Hearing Aid
The New York Times has an article on the impressive Lyric hearing aid from InSound Medical of Newark, California. With the help of miniaturization and smart use of materials, the device is made to be inserted within millimeters of the ear drum and worn 24 hours a day. Because of its proximity to the ear drum and the device's size, the internal battery will supposedly run the unit for at least a month.
Typically, anything that clogs the ear canal would trap moisture and pose an infection risk, but the Lyric is surrounded by a spongy material that allows moisture to escape. Because it sits so close to the ear drum, doctors say that it works more efficiently and that sounds are more natural because they don't have to be amplified as much.When the Lyric's battery dies, the entire device is replaced. Patients do not pay for a new device every time; instead, they pay an annual subscription fee of $2,900 to $3,600 for both ears (less if the hearing loss is in only one ear). Insurance plans typically do not cover the cost of the Lyric, or any other hearing device.
A magnet is used to control the volume, turn it on and off and remove it when the battery runs out. It takes only a few minutes for a doctor to insert a replacement device.
More from the New York Times...
Animation showing how the Lyric works...
Product page: Lyric Technology...
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Thursday, April 10, 2008
Micropressure as Treatment of Meniere's Disease
According to a Medtronic press release, the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery will issue a new policy statement that recommends the use of micropressure devices as a treatment option for people with Meniere's disease, a disorder stemming from excess fluid in the inner ear. Medtronic's Meniett device has already been approved by the FDA, and the new recommendation will help Medtronic remove the "investigational" label from the product, foreshadowing a time when insurance companies will be willing to pay for the therapy.
Medtronic press release: American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery Approves Policy Statement on Micropressure Therapy for Meniere's Disease
Product page: Meniett Device
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Wednesday, March 5, 2008
Digital Audio Used for Treatment of Tinnitus
A company called Neuromonics believes it has developed an audio device that can treat people suffering from ringing in the ears, known as tinnitus. Using an audio player that over time changes the way it plays music and accompanying sounds, the firm already offers its service in number of clinics, reports today's Wall Street Journal:
For the first two months, the music mix includes a noise, which some describe as water in a shower, to cover the tinnitus. In the third month, the shower sound is removed and patients are instructed to turn up the music just loud enough so the tinnitus is audible only during the quiet parts. The idea is the brain will be gradually trained to ignore the tinnitus. After six months, patients use the device as needed.Cost, which includes the initial fitting and counseling on tinnitus management, ranges from $3,500 to $6,000 for the six-month treatment. It isn't generally covered by insurance.
The FDA approved the use of the device in 2005, and the company published its own study findings as to the effectiveness, but there is yet to be an independent assessment from a third party.
Product page: The Oasis™ device...
More details from the Wall Street Journal...
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Friday, February 22, 2008
What Drives the NeuroArm
New details have emerged about NeuroArm, the world's first MRI-guided neurosurgical robot at the University of Calgary, designed to function within the high magnetic field of an MRI environment. Massachusetts-based Johnson Medtech, a subsidiary of Hong Kong's Johnson Electric, is the company that takes credit for the ceramic motors that give the arm its mobility. Furthermore, we have uncovered an interesting video (below) that gives more details on this whole NeuroArm project.
From the press release by Johnson Medtech:
Working with a team of experts from the University of Calgary and MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd. (MDA), Nanomotion of the Johnson Medtech network collaborated to implement non-magnetic actuators that enable the precision motion necessary for conducting microsurgical operations safely within the strong magnetic field of an MRI system. In the past, the magnetic nature of electric motors and their metal components restricted surgeons and surgical tools from the MRI environment, making motion impossible.The neuroArm utilizes sixteen of Nanomotion’s HR2-1-N-3 piezo ultrasonic nonmagnetic motors, coupled with the company’s AB5 drive module. These motors cover six joints, all of which are rotary. Using the real-time visibility into the human body provided by the MRI, the sophisticated Nanomotion actuators in the neuroArm enable surgeons to manipulate tools at a microscopic scale and conduct surgeries that were previously difficult or impossible.
“Our design team overcame a number of challenges in building the neuroArm. One was the need for the neuroArm to operate in the strong magnetic field of the MRI, and with extreme precision,” said Dr. Garnette Sutherland, Professor of Neurosurgery, University of Calgary. “Nanomotion’s non-magnetic piezo ultrasonic motors enable the neuroArm to effectively conduct microsurgical operations within the MRI environment.”
In addition to the non-magnetic benefit of the ceramic motors, Nanomotion’s precision motion control abilities increase the granularity with which a surgeon can work, from within an eighth of an inch using the human hand, to within the width of a hair using the neuroArm. These sophisticated motors provide surgeons with unprecedented detail and control, enabling them to manipulate tools at a microscopic scale.
The video:
Johnson Electric - JEMedtech...
Flashbacks: NeuroArm: Navigating the Future of Surgery ; NeuroArm Robot Promises to Revolutionise MRI-guided Neurosurgery
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Leica M720 OH5: Another Premium to Be a Neurosurgeon
Leica Microsystems has announced a new neurosurgical microscope that features specially designed compact optics that supposedly will make operating much more comfortable for the surgeons.
The following is from the press release:
By incorporating horizontal optics for the first time, Leica Microsystems is writing a groundbreaking chapter in the history of optics design. The optics carrier is so compact that the surgeon naturally adopts a healthy working posture. Whatever the position of the patient, even sitting upright, operations can be performed without arm, back or neck strain. The microscope allows hours of fatigue-free work.A significant increase in working space with variable focus provides free access to the operating area, greater instrument maneuverability and an optimal view. The Leica M720 OH5 supports the surgeon as he works; he can see more and see better, work even more safely and generally benefit from the perfect ergonomics.
No two people are the same. Thanks to individually adjustable components, the Leica M720 surgical microscope provides optimal ergonomic conditions for concentrated and precise work and an excellent view. The two binocular tubes have a swivel range of 115° and feature the innovative butterfly technique, which enables the eyepieces to be swung to a second viewing plane with a simple hand movement. If desired, the tube can be locked in one of five defined positions simply by pressing the ErgoLock™ button. This improves the ergonomics and the stability, which is a particular advantage when using a mouth switch. The microscope can therefore be matched optimally to both the surgeon and his assistant, irrespective of body height, position of the operating area or the microscope.
Thanks to the SpeedSpot™ feature, a simple hand movement focuses the microscope -- there is no need to follow the movement through the eyepiece. If the two laser spots overlay, the surgeon can be sure of a razor-sharp image. As a focusing reference, SpeedSpot™ guarantees a brilliant image at all ports (surgeon, assistant, documentation).
The Leica M720 OH5 surgical microscope ideally combines original Leica APO OptiChrome™ Optics and a 300 Watt xenon illumination system to give the surgeon a steady clear and sharply focused image for the entire duration of the operation.
As working distance decreases, the maximum possible light intensity value is reduced: The working distance-controlled BrightCare™ feature ensures that the light intensity does not surpass safety levels. The magnification-controlled illumination diameter AutoIris™ automatically matches the illuminated area to the field of view. This prevents heating of tissue outside the surgeon's field of observation.
The patented mobility concept of the Leica OH5 stand is based on the proven OH4 system. Thanks to its magnificent reach, it offers the surgeon and the whole operating team a level of maneuverability unattained by competitor products. The system is remarkable for its precise and harmonious balance of maneuverability and extremely easy movement.
Product page: Leica M720 OH5...
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» Eardoc Offers Drug-free, Noninvasive Ear Pain Relief (Supposedly) (February 12, 2008)
» Welch Allyn Introduces Digital MacroView Otoscope (February 6, 2008)
» OTOPod Wireless Diagnostic Audiometer (January 22, 2008)
» Somatom Definition AS: The World's First Adaptive Computed Tomograph (December 6, 2007)
» New Surgical Instruments from KLS Martin Group (November 26, 2007)
» New Hearing Mechanism Discovered (October 11, 2007)
» Sony's Versatile HD Med Monitor (October 5, 2007)
» Pillar Implants Trialed with CPAP Mask (September 17, 2007)
» Vision Sciences' Video Endoscopes Approved by FDA (September 12, 2007)
» Hearing from Inside: The Latest on Otologics Prosthesis (August 29, 2007)