Dentistry
Researchers at Nanchang University in China developed a photodynamic hydrogel treatment for teeth that disrupts bacterial biofilms, helps to prevent cavities, and whitens teeth. The gel is applied to the teeth and is then activated using green light, which is less harsh on nearby skin than the high intensity blue light that is sometimes used for teeth whitening procedures. The treatment contains copper oxide nanoparticles and bismuth oxychloride nanoparticles, and sodium alginate was used to create the hydrogel delivery vehicle. The gel works by releasing reactive oxygen species when illuminated...
Engineers at MIT have created an ultrasound patch that can provide long-term ultrasound imaging of internal organs and structures. The device contains a rigid piezoelectric probe array and uses an underlying layer of elastomer-covered hydrogel in lieu of the gel applied to the skin during conventional ultrasound procedures. At just the size of a postage stamp, the ultrasound patch is highly portable and less expensive than conventional ultrasound technologies. The current iteration of the device requires a wired connection to view the images, but the researchers are working to make...Read More
Researchers at INSERM (Institut national de la santé et de la recherche médicale) in France, and collaborators, have developed a DNA-based nanorobot called the Nano-winch. The tiny creation is made using DNA molecules and a “DNA Origami” approach. The tiny robot is so small that it can land on a cell surface and interact with ‘mechanoreceptors’ that the cell uses to sense mechanical forces acting on it. The robots can apply tiny forces to the mechanoreceptors, allowing the researchers to measure the biochemical and molecular changes that result. While the...Read More
Sleep Monitoring at Home: Interview with Ziv Peremen, CEO of X-trodes
August 10th, 2022 by Conn Hastings
X-trodes, a medtech startup based in Israel, created Smart Skin, a wireless monitoring and analytics technology that is suitable for at-home sleep monitoring. At present, diagnosing sleep disorders is an arduous and expensive business, requiring patients to attend a specialized sleep clinic and wear bulky and uncomfortable equipment, all while attempting to sleep in a strange environment. Part of the problem is that many technologies used for sleep monitoring require patients to be tethered to stationary equipment with wires. This means that patients must sleep on their back and limit...Read More
Many of us can attest to the lumbar pains related to sitting at a desk for endless hours week after week. Even despite using an ergonomic office chair, the reality is that your muscles still need to be stretched and stimulated, otherwise you’ll still end up feeling sore. High-end massage chairs – don’t get me wrong, there’s a reason they are popular – often look like the pilot’s seat of a spacecraft out of a sci-fi movie with more buttons on the user interface than most people know what to...Read More
A team of scientists at Binghamton University in New York State have developed a technique that lets them salvage material from old CDs to make flexible biosensors that are inexpensive and relatively simple to produce. The method involves using a chemical process and sticky tape to peel off the metal coating from the disks, and then using a crafting cutter to shape the flexible material as required. The flexible sensors can be applied to the skin and can send a variety of data to a smartphone via Bluetooth, including pH,...Read More
Lumen: World’s First Device and App for Real-time Metabolic Feedback
August 3rd, 2022 by Alice Ferng
Lumen is the first device and app available to anyone that provides real-time feedback on whether you’re burning carbohydrates or fats. These measurements are usually only made for athletes or patients through special testing centers, hospitals, or clinics, but with Lumen they are now available to everyone, anywhere. Nutrition is a very individualized topic, while metabolism is just as nuanced – one size does not fit all when it comes to diet and nutrition plans – and that’s why dieticians and nutrition coaches can play an important role in health...Read More
Scientists at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and partners at the National College of Art and Design in Dublin have developed a silicone heart model that is intended to model heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. The device, which represents a ‘mock circulatory loop’, includes a simulated version of the left atrium and left ventricle, and each chamber is independently controlled to model the entire cardiac cycle. The researchers use air pressure in a surrounding chamber to induce the device to pump, in much the same way that...Read More
Columbia University scientists and collaborators at Rover Diagnostics have created a rapid PCR test that can be used at the point of care. Weighing in at two pounds, the portable device can rival the sensitivity and accuracy of traditional lab-based PCR testing equipment, but providing results in as little as 23 minutes. The new device includes miniaturized optical components and relies on plasmonic thermocycling. This involves using infrared light to excite plasmonic nanoparticles in the samples, generating gentle heating, and increasing the speed of the process compared with conventional thermocyclers....Read More
Researchers at the University of Sydney in Australia engineered a new spray coating for surfaces that provides long-term protection against bacterial and viral contamination. The material is intended as a long-term alternative to disinfectant sprays and combines hydrophobic properties with antimicrobial nanoparticles to reduce microbial contamination. The hydrophobicity of the coating prevents liquid droplets from spreading over the surface, helping to prevent biofilm formation and microbial colonization. If the coating becomes damaged, reducing its hydrophobic properties, a second line of defense in the form of nanoparticles containing bactericidal zinc ions...Read More
Assessing Heart Function and Fluid Status with Cardiac Scales: Interview with John Lipman, CEO, and Corey Centen, Founder, Bodyport
July 29th, 2022 by Conn Hastings
Bodyport, a medtech company based in San Francisco, developed the Bodyport Cardiac Scale, a set of weighing scales that can non-invasively assess fluid status and heart function. The scales can detect these signals through the feet when a patient steps onto the device. The technology is intended to be convenient and requires only 20 seconds each morning, and should easily lend itself to integration into a daily routine. The device can transmit the data on cardiac hemodynamic parameters to clinicians through cellular networks, and uses AI-based algorithms to identify...Read More
Scientists at Rice University developed a system to wirelessly and rapidly activate specific brain circuits using magnetic fields. The technology has been developed in fruit flies, a common experimental animal, but the researchers hope that it could help in understanding the brain and to develop new treatments for neurological disorders in humans. The technology involves genetically modified fruit flies that express heat sensitive ion channels in specific brain circuits. The researchers inject magnetic nanoparticles into the flies and then cause them to heat up using magnetic fields. This heat activates...Read More
Medicine
Sleep Monitoring at Home: Interview with Ziv Peremen, CEO of X-trodes
X-trodes, a medtech startup based in Israel, created Smart Skin, a wireless monitoring and analytics technology that is suitable for at-home sleep monitoring. At...
August 10th, 2022
Upcycling CDs as Flexible Biosensors
A team of scientists at Binghamton University in New York State have developed a technique that lets them salvage material from old CDs to make flexible biosensors...
August 8th, 2022
Lumen: World’s First Device and App for Real-time Metabolic Feedback
Lumen is the first device and app available to anyone that provides real-time feedback on whether you’re burning carbohydrates or fats. These measurements are...
August 3rd, 2022
Cardiology
Sleep Monitoring at Home: Interview with Ziv Peremen, CEO of X-trodes
X-trodes, a medtech startup based in Israel, created Smart Skin, a wireless monitoring and analytics technology that is suitable for at-home sleep monitoring. At...
August 10th, 2022
Silicone Heart Models Heart Failure
Scientists at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and partners at the National College of Art and Design in Dublin have developed a silicone heart model that...
August 3rd, 2022
Assessing Heart Function and Fluid Status with Cardiac Scales: Interview with John Lipman, CEO, and Corey Centen, Founder, Bodyport
Bodyport, a medtech company based in San Francisco, developed the Bodyport Cardiac Scale, a set of weighing scales that can non-invasively assess fluid status and...
July 29th, 2022
Surgery
Bacterial Microrobots Deliver Drug Payload to Tumors
Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Germany have developed tumor-targeting microrobots using bacteria. The team exploited the tendency...
July 28th, 2022
Surgical Dressing Helps Kill Melanoma, Regenerate Healthy Cells
Scientists at the University of Nottingham in the UK have created a surgical dressing that is specifically designed to facilitate and enhance photothermal therapy...
July 19th, 2022
TORdx LUNG Test for Donor Lung Assessment: Interview with Eric Brouwer, Chief Scientific Officer at SQI Diagnostics
SQI Diagnostics, a medtech company based in Canada, is developing the TORdx LUNG Test. The technology is intended to assist clinicians in assessing donor lungs in...
July 18th, 2022
Emergency Medicine
Wearable Sweat Sensor Warns of Impending Cytokine Storm
Researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas, in collaboration with a company called EnLiSense, developed a wearable electrochemical sweat sensor that can...
May 5th, 2022
Hemostasis on Contact: Interview with Joe Landolina, CEO of Cresilon
Cresilon, a New York-based medtech company, specializes in developing hemostatic technology. Its co-founder and CEO, Joe Landolina, created a plant-based hemostatic...
April 12th, 2022
Swoop Portable MRI: Interview with David Scott, President and CEO of Hyperfine
Hyperfine, a company based in St Guilford, Connecticut, created Swoop, a portable MRI scanner. The device received FDA approval as the first bedside MRI scanner in...
October 1st, 2021
Radiology
Ultrasound Sticker for 48 Hours of Imaging
Engineers at MIT have created an ultrasound patch that can provide long-term ultrasound imaging of internal organs and structures. The device contains a rigid...
August 11th, 2022
Diamond Sensor for Smaller, Portable MEG Scanners
Researchers at RMIT University in Australia have developed a diamond sensor that can measure magnetic fields up to 10 times more sensitively than current sensors....
July 18th, 2022
Magnetic Steering System for Guidewires
Percutaneous coronary intervention is an incredibly useful technique to minimally invasively investigate and treat cardiac issues, such as blockages in the coronary...
June 28th, 2022
Anesthesiology
Perfusion Machine Restores Donor Liver for Transplant
Clinical researchers at the University of Zurich in Switzerland have created a perfusion machine to store donor livers before transplant. We originally reported on...
June 7th, 2022
Magnetic Tentacle Robot Travels Deep into Lungs
Researchers at the University of Leeds in the UK have created a magnetic “tentacle robot” that is just 2 mm in diameter, which they hope will be able to...
March 25th, 2022
Finger Clip for Blood Pressure Monitoring
At the University of Missouri a team of researchers developed a custom finger clip device that can continuously measure a variety of vitals, including blood...
January 5th, 2022
