Reproductive Medicine
Getting pregnant is not always as easy as our sex education teachers promised it would be. It can be stressful, frustrating, and heart wrenching. One of the key factors to a successful conception is timing intercourse during the woman’s fertile window – a period of time that includes the five days prior to ovulation and up to 24 hours after ovulation. In order for a woman to determine her fertile window, she needs to be able to pinpoint when she ovulates. Although many signs and symptoms can indicate ovulation, such...
Graphene, the material that consists of a one atom thick layer of carbons, is so impressive that its development was awarded a Nobel Prize in physics. To add to its abilities, researchers at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden used it to create microscopic spikes that kill bacteria upon contact. Because our native cells are generally much bigger than bacterial cells, the same spikes, working as a bed of nails, don't seem to damage human tissue. The technology surely has incredible potential for preventing the growth of bacterial infections on...
Angel Medical Systems, based in Tinton Falls, New Jersey, won FDA approval for its AngelMed Guardian implantable device that may help detect oncoming heart attacks before they even happen. It looks like a pacemaker and it monitors for ST segment changes, an ECG sign of ischemia. When it detects sustained ST segment changes, the implant sends a signal to an external device that then warns the patient to seek medical care. The hope is that early detection will lead to many heart attacks avoided, or at least whose effects would...
University of Connecticut researchers have created a new orthopedic material for fixing bones that's made out of spider silk, itself one of the world's strongest natural materials. While silk fibroin, the protein in silk that gives it strength, is already in use in sutures and other medical devices, this is the first time it was made into an extremely tough polymer composite. The new material, a combination of silk and polylactic acid, a biocompatible plastic, has impressive mechanical characteristics that are siumilar to metal. But, since there's no metal, there aren't...
The promise of exoskeletons is to make manual labor easier by providing extra strength to the arms, and hopefully alleviating injuries and overall impact on the body. Researchers at Ohio State wanted to study whether this is really true, so they evaluated whether a Steadicam device, commonly used passive device for stabilizing cameras during filming, really does help workers in the long run. In short, what they found out is that the unpowered device, really transfers the impact to other parts of the body, increasing the load on the spine...
Opioid abuse having become a serious health threat for many and a dire societal problem in many parts of America. Perhaps a simple messaging app can help? A collaboration from Washington University School of Medicine and Epharmix, a nearby company based in St. Louis, has released a simple text-based service to help people kicking the addiction. It questions the patients about their feelings, keeps tabs on their progress, and provides an easy way to seek help. It helps care providers to direct their effort where needed, while helping to automate and...
Remote-Controlled Signal Activates T Cells for Cancer Immunotherapy
April 23rd, 2018 by Conn Hastings
Researchers at Georgia Tech have developed a technique to remotely activate genetically-modified T cells to attack cancer. The method employs a near-infrared laser that heats gold nanorods present in the tumor, causing local heating. This heat activates the T cells, making them more aggressive in killing cancer cells. Immunotherapies, such as T cell therapy, hold significant promise in treating cancer. However, the technique is still very new, and isn’t always effective. “Right now, we're adept at harvesting a patient's own T-cells, modifying to target cancer, growing them outside the body...
BioSig Technologies Announces FDA 510(k) Submission for PURE EP (A Follow-up Interview)
April 20th, 2018 by Michael Batista
Last year, Medgadget spoke with BioSig Technologies about the company's PURE EP System for detection of cells that cause arrhythmias. PURE EP is a surface electrocardiogram and intracardiac multichannel recording system that acquires, processes, and displays high fidelity cardiac recordings required during electrophysiology studies and catheter ablation procedures. A nationwide survey of electrophysiologists in 2017 highlighted the noise reduction and overall signal clarity and accuracy as differentiating factors setting PURE EP apart from other electrophysiology signal recording and processing systems. Mayo Clinic's Dr. Samuel J. Asirvatham, a BioSig Scientific Advisory Board member has stated...
A team of researchers from Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard, Stony Brook, Caltech, and UC Berkeley have developed a remarkable new microscope for looking at living cells in 3D still inside the body. The microscope relies on a technique dubbed as lattice light-sheet microscopy, which involves passing a plane of light through tissue repeatedly. The beam of light is powerful enough to image the insides of individual cells, but because it's focused into a very narrow sheet it doesn't seem to disturb the processes taking place inside the cells. Here are...
New Organ Preservation Device Keeps Livers Alive Longer and Better for Transplanation
April 20th, 2018 by Tom Peach
The success of a liver transplant is significantly limited by the quality of the donor organ. Currently this results in a severe shortage of acceptable organs, as many potential organs do not tolerate the static cold storage (SCS) of the conventional transplant procedure. Despite significant clinical advances in transplant procedures over the past 30 years, the mechanism for liver preservation has changed very little: the organ is flushed and placed on ice, lowering metabolic activity ten-fold in the hope of reducing damage. However, over time ischemic damage occurs, which reduces...
Scientists working at Hong Kong Polytechnic University have developed a lenses for glasses that are able to slow down myopic progression in children. The center of the lens works as in a common pair of glasses, adjusting for myopia and astigmatism, while around this region the lens consists of dozens of spots of myopic defocus that help with vision correction. These so-called Defocus Incorporated Multiple Segments (DIMS) Spectacle Lenses work at all viewing distances. “We have tried to incorporate myopic defocus optics into different treatment modalities, such as contact lens....
As everyone knows, early diagnosis brings the best chance of fighting cancer. At ETH Zurich, a Swiss technical university, researchers genetically modified skin cells to produce a tattoo that makes itself visible only when the person wearing it has signs of cancer. The technology consists of a "synthetic gene network" that activates the production of melanin pigment when calcium levels rise. Spikes in calcium are related to the growth of some neoplasms, so the technology has the potential to identify the presence of cancer earlier than anything available now. While...
Medicine
Graphene Spike Coating for Implants Kills Any Bacteria Trying to Settle
Graphene, the material that consists of a one atom thick layer of carbons, is so impressive that its development was awarded a Nobel Prize in physics. To add to its...
April 23rd, 2018
FDA Approves Implant for Detecting Oncoming Heart Attacks
Angel Medical Systems, based in Tinton Falls, New Jersey, won FDA approval for its AngelMed Guardian implantable device that may help detect oncoming heart attacks...
April 23rd, 2018
Text Messaging System Helps Care Providers and Patients Manage Opioids
Opioid abuse having become a serious health threat for many and a dire societal problem in many parts of America. Perhaps a simple messaging app can help? A...
April 23rd, 2018
Cardiology
FDA Approves Implant for Detecting Oncoming Heart Attacks
Angel Medical Systems, based in Tinton Falls, New Jersey, won FDA approval for its AngelMed Guardian implantable device that may help detect oncoming heart attacks...
April 23rd, 2018
BioSig Technologies Announces FDA 510(k) Submission for PURE EP (A Follow-up Interview)
Last year, Medgadget spoke with BioSig Technologies about the company's PURE EP System for detection of cells that cause arrhythmias. PURE EP is a surface...
April 20th, 2018
4Dx Uses Algorithms to Better Visualize Lung Function
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease affects millions of people in the United States. The main method of diagnosis is the pulmonary function tests (PFTs), in which a...
April 19th, 2018
Surgery
New Organ Preservation Device Keeps Livers Alive Longer and Better for Transplanation
The success of a liver transplant is significantly limited by the quality of the donor organ. Currently this results in a severe shortage of acceptable organs, as...
April 20th, 2018
4Dx Uses Algorithms to Better Visualize Lung Function
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease affects millions of people in the United States. The main method of diagnosis is the pulmonary function tests (PFTs), in which a...
April 19th, 2018
Siemens Gets FDA Cleared for Two New Budget Friendly Yet Powerful CTs
Siemens Healthineers is on an FDA clearing streak of its newest CT scanners. The latest news, following up clearances of the SOMATOM Force and SOMATOM Edge Plus,...
April 18th, 2018
Emergency Medicine
Siemens Gets FDA Cleared for Two New Budget Friendly Yet Powerful CTs
Siemens Healthineers is on an FDA clearing streak of its newest CT scanners. The latest news, following up clearances of the SOMATOM Force and SOMATOM Edge Plus,...
April 18th, 2018
ECGlove Helps Medical Personnel Rapidly Monitor for Arrhythmias
Last month, Medgadget had the opportunity to visit the great state of Texas for the annual South by Southwest (SXSW) event. We had a chance to chat with Yoku Méndez,...
April 16th, 2018
Defibrillator Pads with Needles to Deliver More Effective Shocks
External defibrillators that shock hearts out of life threatening arrhythmias are pretty brutal devices. They have to deliver a great deal of electrical energy into...
April 13th, 2018
Radiology
4Dx Uses Algorithms to Better Visualize Lung Function
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease affects millions of people in the United States. The main method of diagnosis is the pulmonary function tests (PFTs), in which a...
April 19th, 2018
LivaNova's SenTiva Vagus Nerve Stimulation for Epilepsy Cleared in Europe
LivaNova won European CE Mark clearance for its SenTiva generator and accompanying Programming System for treatment of epilepsy in patients that don't respond well...
April 18th, 2018
Siemens Gets FDA Cleared for Two New Budget Friendly Yet Powerful CTs
Siemens Healthineers is on an FDA clearing streak of its newest CT scanners. The latest news, following up clearances of the SOMATOM Force and SOMATOM Edge Plus,...
April 18th, 2018
Anesthesiology
4Dx Uses Algorithms to Better Visualize Lung Function
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease affects millions of people in the United States. The main method of diagnosis is the pulmonary function tests (PFTs), in which a...
April 19th, 2018
ECGlove Helps Medical Personnel Rapidly Monitor for Arrhythmias
Last month, Medgadget had the opportunity to visit the great state of Texas for the annual South by Southwest (SXSW) event. We had a chance to chat with Yoku Méndez,...
April 16th, 2018
Defibrillator Pads with Needles to Deliver More Effective Shocks
External defibrillators that shock hearts out of life threatening arrhythmias are pretty brutal devices. They have to deliver a great deal of electrical energy into...
April 13th, 2018
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