Health and Wellbeing
‘George’ the life-sized wound model
The University of Hertfordshire in the UK is striving to improve patient care and reduce hospital infections through use of a life-sized wound model dubbed “George”. The model was designed to assist learning about patients with chronic who represent around 200,000 individuals in the UK at any one time, according to the Tissue Viability Team in the University’s School of Nursing and Midwifery.
"Put that gum back in your mouth Johnny"
April 10, 2008 A recent study on the effects of a new chewable mint that mimics the cavity fighting properties of saliva has found a 62 percent decrease in cavities in children using the product. Read More
Picis real-time dashboard for perioperative departments
The Picis Perioperative Dashboard is a Business Activity Monitoring (BAM) tool designed to to assist hospital surgical departments in the daunting task of logistical management by providing a real-time, easy-to-read snapshot measuring case delays, quality improvement compliance, patient throughput and a range of key indicators. Read More
Specialized fruit energy drink for athletes
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HortResearch has already developed a biosensor that measures hormone levels in saliva in real time to indicate to athletes whether they should train more or less. Now it is developing a new fruit-based product which could dramatically increase muscle power and delay fatigue. Clinical trials are underway on a fruit-based energy drink which tested off-the-charts in initial experiments. Isolated muscle tissue was exposed to fruit extracts, after which an electrical impulse was delivered. The results showed that muscle power was increased up to 70% and fatigue delayed by up to 20%. The company is currently in talks with international sports teams interested in trialling the drink and with specialist nutrition companies about a possible launch. Read More
3-D virtual reality dental simulator
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March 27, 2008 Evidence of dentistry has been found dating back as far as 5500 BC however common knowledge tends to only go back as far as the Middle Ages when dental procedures were performed by barbers or general practitioners (with the aid of pliers and a bottle of whisky). These days patient care is of the utmost importance, which is why dentistry researchers at the University of Illinois (UIC) are developing a haptic training simulator called PerioSim, which uses 3-D virtual reality technology to allow dental students to improve their skills before being allowed near real live patients.
Alzheimer's detection using near-infrared light
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It is estimated that around 4.5 million people in the US are currently living with Alzheimer's and the disease is one of the leading causes of death, accounting for tens of thousands each year. There has been no definitive way of diagnosing the disease on living patients so doctors have had to rely on medical histories, administering physical exams, and neuropsychological assessments. Now, a team of researchers in Massachusetts has developed a way of examining brain tissue with near-infrared light to detect signs of Alzheimer's disease.
My Beating Heart comfort pillow and meditation aid
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March 25, 2008 Our mother’s heart was the first sound we heard, so a heartbeat is one of the most reassuring sounds we know. My Beating Heart, is a heart-shaped pillow with a computer and heartbeat generator inside. Turn it on, and the heartbeat it creates gradually changes rhythm, entraining the user and modeling the heartbeat of a person in a deep meditative state. The holder is induced into a state of peace and calmness – an ideal meditation aid, a great way to relax, meditate, daydream, or nap and “must have” for a any child we’d have thought. Read More
Solving the drug price crisis
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March 24, 2008 The mounting U.S. drug price crisis can be contained and eventually reversed by separating drug discovery from drug marketing and by establishing a non-profit company to oversee funding for new medicines, according to two MIT experts on the pharmaceutical industry. Stan Finkelstein, M.D., senior research scientist in MIT's Engineering Systems Division, and Peter Temin, Elisha Gray II Professor of Economics, present their research and detail their proposal in their new book, "Reasonable Rx: Solving the Drug Price Crisis," published by Financial Times Press. Read More
Interactive non-drug treatment for ADD and ADHD
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March 19, 2008 Interactive Healing Centers, a facility dedicated to helping children with attention deficit and hyperactive conditions, has announced a non-drug treatment technique for ADD/ADHD. The technology teaches the brain to retrain itself through a specialized computer program that monitors brain wave patterns. The program then guides the brain through a conditioned response and a gratification technique, resulting in a normal brain wave that reduces or completely eradicates the ADD/ADHD response. Read More
Regrowing major body parts
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March 18, 2008 You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone and that goes doubly when there’s a limb amputation involved. We have always marvelled at the Salamander’s ability to regrow lost limbs – this fascinating article details the history and progress of work in the area of regenerating limbs. Read More
Aquatic Fitness Systems' advanced swim spas
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March 11, 2008 Aquatic Fitness Systems has taken a multi-faceted approach to the low impact benefits of training in the water by incorporating walking, running, stretching, rowing and strength training functionality into its line of luxury swim spas.
Humphrey Field Analyzer II-i offers streamlined Glaucoma management
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Carl Zeiss Meditec has announced the latest version of its Humphrey Field Analyzer – an automated diagnostic system for Glaucoma management and blindness prevention. By allowing them to closely and easily monitor changes in the eye, the HFA II-i will provide doctors with the ability to prevent irreversible vision loss in patients with Glaucoma – a degenerative disease of the optic nerve that progresses without obvious symptoms, and is the second leading cause of blindness worldwide. Read More
Samsung and adidas miCoach fitness phone
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March 6, 2008 It is inevitable that one day our mobile phones will monitor the body’s key functions - ubiquitous usage of such a device moved closer this week when Samsung and Adidas announced the miCoach mobile phone. The miCoach comes with a stride sensor (pedometer) and heart rate monitor, enabling the phone’s software to monitor your workouts and advise/push you with a voice-simulating personal coach. Despite concepts from Nokia and Microsoft, and add ons from Kiwok and Alivetech , the miCoach is the first phone with heart rate functionality, so it is a milestone. Read More
Game Ready injury treatment system
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CoolSystems has released the next generation of its Game Ready injury treatment system combining form-fitting wraps, cold and intermittent compression, and adjustable pressure and temperature settings. The convenient system is designed to be used for treatment of musculoskeletal injuries and post-operative rehabilitation. Read More
Bar-coded surgical sponges to increase patient safety
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March 6, 2008 We’ve all seen a current affairs program with a victim who found out their doctor left a surgical sponge inside them - it’s a nightmare scenario for all concerned with doctors facing litigation and patients left with potentially life threatening infections ...and the scary thing is that it does actual happen. The Safety-Sponge System from SurgiCount Medical is designed to prevent these types of accidents using bar-code technology to account for all surgical sponges used during medical procedures.
New funds for development of high tech prosthetic limb
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A team led by the Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) at Johns Hopkins University has received a contract from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to complete development of a prosthetic arm that will look, feel and perform like a natural limb. Read More
Second Sight announces milestone in groundbreaking retinal implant trial
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February 20, 2008 It has to be among the most powerful examples of the miraculous potential of modern science and technology - restoring sight to the blind. Following approval from the US FDA last year, Second Sight Medical Products Inc has now announced that enrollment is complete for the first phase of clinical trials on a system that restores a basic level of sight to sufferers of retinal eye diseases. Enrollment at key European sites also underway. Ten subjects have been recruited for the Phase I trial of the second-generation electronic retinal implant known as The Argus II, which is capable of restoring rudimentary vision using an external camera and transmitter mounted in eyeglasses linked to a tiny array of 60 electrodes that are attached to the retina. Read More
Open up and say ahhh: new technique uses laser light to analyze breath for diseases
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February 19, 2008 We're familiar with the use of breath testing to determine blood alcohol content, but according to new research the air we exhale could reveal much more about what's happening in our bodies, and in the future, breath testing could become a regular part of visiting the doctor. The research by a team of US scientists has shown that markers for diseases such as asthma or cancer can be determined by analyzing trace molecules in the breath using laser light. Experiments using a pulsed laser aimed into a breath-filled cavity proved that gases such as ammonia, carbon monoxide, and methane could be detected revealing signposts to particular diseases being present in the patient - ammonia, for example, may indicate renal failure. Read More
Researchers develop new dark field x-ray technique
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February 5, 2008 A breakthrough by European researchers has the potential to expand the application of powerful "dark-field" x-ray imaging using standard medical and industrial imaging equipment. Normally only possible via prohibitively expensive and sophisticated crystal optics, the detailed images produced by "dark-field" x-rays could be applied to diagnose breast cancer or Alzheimer’s disease, identify explosives in hand luggage, or pinpoint hairline cracks in airplane wings. Read More
i-LIMB bionic hand approaches 100 fittings
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January 30, 2008 Touch Bionics has announced that its i-LIMB - the world’s first commercially available bionic hand - is expected to achieve the milestone of 100 patient fittings by the end of February this year, having already reached more than 70 people worldwide since its July 2007 launch.
INADA’s Sogno chair delivers full-body shiatsu massage
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January 30, 2008 Japanese company INADA has introduced Sogno - a full-body massage chair that uses infra-red scanning to identify shiatsu acupressure points on your body and then delivers a massage which feels like you’re being pummeled and manipulated by a real masseuse. Read More
The canned cheeseburger – fast food in the wilderness
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It’s unlikely to become a major competitor for McDonalds, but the world’s first cheeseburger in a can is the epitome of fast food, having been designed so adventurers can have a touch of comfort cuisine when they are a long way off the beaten track – just throw the can in hot water, wait a few minutes, open and eat. Sold under one of Katadyn’s best known brands, Trekking-Mahlzeiten, a subsidiary company that develops specialist ready-meals for the outdoor, expedition and extreme athlete markets, the offbeat product has a 12 month shelf life and is part of a range of high tech nutrition and survival products that includes a powdered alcoholic red wine, powdered chocolate mousse and the most remarkable of all, Peronin, “fuel for the bloodstream.” Read More
Electronic Contact Lens promises bionic capabilities for everyone
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It’s not often in this era of rampant technological innovation that a fundamentally new concept surfaces with groundbreaking societal implications, but that was the case this week with the news that engineers at the University of Washington (UW) have used microscopic scale manufacturing techniques to combine a flexible contact lens with an imprinted electronic circuit and lights. Ultimately, such devices promise the bionic capabilities we became familiar with in the Terminator movies and Bionic Man TV series: optical zoom eyesight, recording what we see (quite literally), effectively invisible heads-up high resolution computer displays, genuine GPS-based augmented reality and a complete real-time health monitoring system with visible read outs. Thanks to the team headed by UW Electrical Engineering Professor Babak Parviz, these concepts are now not just viable, but likely in the foreseeable future. Gizmag spoke with Parviz about the project … Read More
High-tech doll to assist brain injury research
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January 14, 2008 Researchers in forensic medicine at the University of Oslo are learning more about brain injuries in infants caused by shaking with the assistance of a very high-tech doll. Read More
Fashion with bite – Taser’s new C2 stunner with MP3 player holster
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January 11, 2008 It seems we mistakenly thought that convergence meant we were supposed to be carrying less gadgets rather than more gadgets, but Taser launched a new range of stun guns in a range of female-focussed colors at the Consumer Electronics Show this week, adding yet another must-have for those who wish to ensure their personal safety – the Taser MPH (Music Player Holster), which is a combination 1GB MP3 player and Taser C2 holster. In addition to the leopard print, other new Taser C2 colors include red-hot red and fashion pink. Read More
Human Touch Portable Massage Pad: take relaxation with you
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January 7, 2008 Massage is considered a great tool for an active and healthy lifestyle and in recent years a number of effective, purpose-built massage chairs have appeared on the market. These devices do suffer from one drawback however - you can't take them with you. The solution from Human Touch is to go portable - its new HT-1470 back massage pad is specially designed to fit on almost any sofa, home or office chair, providing a go-anywhere, heated massage to knead out tough knots and keep the blood flowing at any time of day. Read More
HawkEye drug-recognition tool aids law enforcement
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January 5, 2008 The AcuNetx HawkEye law enforcement system, which magnifies and records tell-tale signs of drug intoxication in a suspect’s pupils, has been awarded two separate patents by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. The tool is now being used by highway patrol officers and at sobriety checkpoints across the U.S.A. Read More
E-prescribing with iPhone
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December 19, 2007 DrFirst has announced that its Rcopia™ e-prescribing system is now available to physicians using Apple iPhone. The development enables the company's electronic prescribing and medication reconciliation services to be accessed in real-time on a mobile browser through a WiFi or wireless carrier’s broadband connection. Read More
Lifestraw mark II - push to expand distribution of upgraded lifesaving invention
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December 3, 2007 We have previously examined the remarkable potential of the Lifestraw - a personal water purification device that avoids the need for electricity by utilizing the sucking power of the user to kill disease causing micro organisms and filter bacteria, delivering the immeasurable benefits of clean water to anywhere on the planet. With estimates putting the number of daily deaths that result from unsafe drinking water at 6000, there's no questioning the potential of the Lifestraw to alleviate misery and since our first encounter with the device, manufacturer Vestergaard Frandsen has upgraded the specifications in response to feedback from the field. Read More
Philips unveils new heart scanner
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November 26, 2007 Philips has unveiled a 256-slice Brilliance iCT scanner that can create a 3D visualization of the heart in only two beats. Announced at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) in Chicago, the new scanner boast a significant reduction in radiation doses in addition to enhanced image acquisition.
Samsung announces new flat-panel digital X-ray detector
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November 23, 2007 Samsung has developed an advanced flat panel digital X-ray detector (FPXD) for radiology machines that promises faster, cheaper and more accurate imaging in medical labs. Developed in conjunction with Korean medical machinery manufacturing company Vatech, the new device utilizes thin-film transistor (TFT) technology to produce high-resolution (9.4 megapixel) without the need for film or development required in analog film applications.
New laser treatment aids pain management
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November 12, 2007 Statistics from the International Association for the Study of Pain indicate that one in five people suffer from moderate to severe chronic pain making it is one of the most costly health problems in the US. Traditional treatments have often included ongoing use of medications but much research is being done into alternative therapies such as laser treatment, with new offerings now on the market to assist with the reduction in pain from arthritis, injury or long term soreness. Read More
Medical 3D-image display offers non-contact control
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November 7, 2007 The use of 3D imaging in the medical field has proven to be a boon to doctors when diagnosing patients, and 3D models of the human body have assisted medical manufacturers in developing better medical devices and treatments. Now researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Telecommunications, Heinrich-Hertz-Institut HHI in Berlin have developed a display that combines a 3-D screen with a non-contact user interface that allows images to be rotated by hand gestures much like the display Tom Cruise played with in the film Minority Report. Read More
Lasers to combat AIDS
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November 7, 2007 Current laser treatments for virus and disease can be more harmful than effective, sometimes causing damage to DNA and even skin cancer. Now groundbreaking research has developed a new technique that uses lasers to destroy viruses and bacteria, including AIDS and Hepatitis, without causing harm to the human cells of the infected person. Read More
Avurt IM-5 non lethal self defence pepper gun
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November 1, 2007 The Avurt IM-5 launcher is a flashlight sized non-lethal self-defense device that has a longer range than Tasers and aerosol-based pepper spray. The USD$299 laser sighted launcher fires pellets filled with PAVA powder at distances of up to 40 feet, burning the eyes, nose and throat of the target. Read More
