Researchers at Hokkaido University have developed a micro-patterned cell culture platform to study the behavior of pancreatic cancer cells. The new cell culture substrate revealed previously unknown and clinically relevant pancreatic cell behaviors that could help researchers to develop new therapies. “Cancer studies so far either use cell cultures in which cancer cells don’t necessarily […]
Author: Medgadged
Modernizing Hospital Drug Management: Interview with Kit Check’s CEO, Kevin MacDonald
Inventory management grows increasingly difficult as a business or institution grows larger. Often, it is viewed as a purely economic problem – better management of inventory (location, expiry dates, etc…) results in better savings for a business. However, hospitals have a particular obligation towards excellent management of their inventories to ensure the safety and efficacy […]
“Spray-On Skin” from AVITA Medical Approved to Treat Serious Burns
AVITA Medical, a Valencia, California firm, won FDA approval for its remarkable RECELL Autologous Cell Harvesting Device for serious burns in adult patients. In preparation for treatment, a small healthy piece of the patient’s skin sample is taken, from which the so-called “Spray-On Skin” preparation is made. The process only takes 30 minutes, so it […]
Spinal Cord Epidural Stimulation Lets Paralyzed Walk Again
While paralysis is common following a serious spinal injury, it seems that many patients may be treated with a new therapy that has already proven to restore walking and standing in a few study volunteers. Researchers at University of Louisville in Kentucky, reporting in New England Journal of Medicine, combined spinal cord epidural stimulation with simultaneous […]
Deep Convolutional Neural Network Identifies Lung Cancer Types from Biopsy Slices
Many of us think of artificial intelligence (AI) as computers mimicking humans in thinking and behavior. Thankfully, the reality is still very different and AI is more of an evolving tool that can tackle narrow tasks that humans are otherwise not good enough at. One of those tasks is looking at complex images of tissue […]
Patient Transfer Scale Simplifies Management of Immobile Patients
Marsden, a UK firm specializing in manufacturing all kinds of weighing scales, is releasing a Patient Transfer Scale that serves two purposes in a single device. As immobile patients need to be transferred to a scale to weigh them anyways, a British nurse realized that a lot of effort can be spared if the transfer […]
Body Sensors and Brain Simulator to Estimate Effects of Head Injuries
Injuries to the brain are hard to assess, particularly just after a traumatic event. Various imaging techniques can help to assess how the brain has been impacted, but they are still not very good in many cases, leaving physicians with not enough data to form confident diagnoses. Researchers at Penn State are working on a […]
Microbubble-Shooting Algae Skeletons Kill Bacterial Biofilms
Biofilms are groups of bacteria that clump together and protect each other. They are the cause of all sorts of infections, and because cleansers and antibiotics have a lot of difficulty dealing with them there’s been a search for new solutions. Though biofilms do form inside the body, they are notorious in the medtech industry […]
EverSleep Wearable Sleep Tracker: Product Review and Interview with CEO
Readers might recall the 2017 Indiegogo campaign by SomnoHealth to create EverSleep, a wearable sleep tracker with built-in oxygenation monitoring. The campaign reached 224% of its original goal in addition to receiving a $50k Arrow Electronics Flash Funding Grant and recognition as a 2017 National Sleep Foundation SleepTech 2017 Semifinalist. Today, the EverSleep device is […]
Simulator Evaluates Effect of High-Field MRI on Breast Tissues
MRI machines used in hospitals today are generally limited to having magnetic fields no stronger than 3 Tesla. This is partially because a higher resonant magnetic field can, in certain cases, heat up living tissues and cause permanent damage. But, knowing whether patients would really suffer inside powerful MRI machines has remained a challenge. Now […]
Precipio Announces ICEme Kit for Lung Cancer Mutation Detection
Earlier this year, Medgadget heard from Precipio CEO Illan Danieli on how his company uses advanced diagnostics and personalized medicine to reduce the prevalence of cancer misdiagnosis. Over 1 million patients globally and about 200,000 patients in the U.S. are annually diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). This week, the company announced the launch ICEme, a new […]
First Blood Pressure Monitor with Cellular Connectivity Now Available in U.S.
Livongo, a Silicon Valley firm, is releasing in the U.S. its cellular-based blood pressure monitor, along with a smartphone app and accompanying online platform for managing and sharing the readings. The blood pressure unit uploads its measurements to the Livongo cloud platform, without having to connect the device to a WiFi network, what the company […]
Risk Management in Medical Devices Industry: a 2-Day In-Person Seminar
Risk management is a mandatory and necessary process during the entire device life. Not only will it help to design and maintain devices efficiently, but it also ensures that the device will be as safe as possible and prevents harms to patients, users, and the environment. Like any process that tries to produce repeatable and […]
Face and Voice Recognition Identifies Dementia Sufferers
Dementia can creep on slowly and develop without much notice in many patients. Monitoring these changes is not easy, typically requiring professional experts to interpret faint symptoms gauged through standard questionnaires. Patients undergoing such testing tend to get used to it and end up improving their test taking ability, skewing the results. Researchers at Osaka University […]
Paladin Carotid PTA Balloon with Embolic Protection Filter Cleared by FDA
Contego Medical, out of Raleigh, North Carolina, won FDA clearance for its Paladin carotid PTA (Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty) balloon catheter. The device, used to open up narrow arteries and to post-dilation of self-expanding stents, has a built-in embolic protection filter that traps any debris that may become dislodged and forced to flow downstream of the […]
Wheelchair Cushion with Smart Capabilities Avoids Pressure Ulcers
Engineers at the University of Texas at Arlington have developed a new seat cushion for wheelchairs that works in an intelligent way to prevent the development of pressure ulcers. Decubitus ulcers come about when the same part of the body experiences applied pressure for long periods of time. There are cushions and mattresses made of […]
FDA Clears Pure-Vu Slim Sleeve to Clean Out Colons Using Slim Colonoscopes
Motus GI, a company out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, won FDA clearance for its Pure-Vu Slim Sleeve, an extension that allows the Pure-Vu System to be used with slim colonoscopes. The Pure-Vu System allows for cleansing of the colon and may even let patients skip on fasting in preparation for a colonoscopy. It delivers […]
Talking Through Skin May Help Disabled People Communicate
Many disabilities create communication limitations for patients and many of these limitations still have poor technological solutions. A new method of sending messages to people, neither through text nor speech, has been developed in a collaboration between Purdue University, MIT, and Facebook. Their prototype device is a wrist pad that has a series of vibrating […]
New Faster, Cheaper, Better Test Platform for Nucleic Acid Identification of Diseases
At the National University of Singapore, scientists have developed a portable, point-of-care nucleic acid test platform that can be used to diagnose a variety of diseases. It comes in the form of a cartridge that does not need to be kept refrigerated or handled specially in any other way and once used it provides results faster […]
Olympus Gets FDA Clearance for EZ Shot 3 Plus 25 G Endoscopic Ultrasound Needle
Olympus won FDA clearance for its EZ Shot 3 plus 25 G single-use endoscopic ultrasound needle for fine needle aspiration and fine needle biopsy procedures. The company also won added indications for the entire EZ Shot 3 Plus product range. The EZ Shot 3 Plus is intended to be used with Olympus’s endoscopic ultrasound system […]