Chest compressions, if performed properly, can save people from cardiac arrest. Most bystanders faced with an individual requiring resuscitation fail at this task, in many cases because their compressions are too weak and are not delivered correctly. Now, researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research and University of Applied Sciences, both in Germany, have […]
Author: Medgadged
Implanted Electrodes Improve Powered Prosthetic Arms
Today’s conventional powered prosthetic arms usually have a few built-in electrodes that make contact with patient skin. These are good enough to open and close a simple claw, but for more nuanced control of prostheses with multiple degrees of freedom and individual fingers, a better approach is required. Implantable electrodes can gather a great deal […]
Flexible Body Monitor Measures ECG, Breathing, Heart Rate Continuously for Weeks
Continuous, long-term monitoring of physiological activity can provide doctors, caretakers, and scientists with nuanced information about someone’s health. Children, the frail and elderly, and people with all sorts of conditions often have difficulty wearing and using existing body-worn sensors. Now, researchers at Georgia Tech have designed a remarkable device that can be worn on the […]
Self-Healing Bacteriophage Hydrogel to Target Infections, Cancer
Antibiotics are the predominant tool when fighting bacterial infections, but bacteriophages could potentially be a lot more effective. Bacteriophages are viruses that attack bacteria and because they avoid injuring human cells they are a promising therapeutic tool, if used correctly. Moreover, they can be used alongside antibiotics, since the two don’t affect each other. At […]
Tiny Robots Aim to Work Inside Our Bodies
If we’re to have robots that work inside our bodies to find and cure diseases, they must be very small. To help make the dreams of futurists a reality, researchers at Georgia Tech have now created a robot that weighs only five milligrams and is no taller than the side of a US penny. The […]
Computational Simulations to Guide Cancer Therapy
Researchers from Argonne National Laboratory and University of Chicago have developed a new supercomputer-based tool to model tumor progression and destruction by the immune system. Their work demonstrates that computational simulations of immune-tumor interactions can infer whether or not a given tumor can be destroyed with immunotherapy. This exciting development may one day curate personalized […]
Artificial Protein Switch for Smart Cell Therapies
Researchers from University of California, San Francisco and the University of Washington have developed a new artificial protein switch, dubbed LOCKR. Their work demonstrates that the new switch can be used to control many intracellular processes, including mediating molecular traffic inside a cell, degrading specific proteins, and causing a cell to self-destruct. This exciting development […]
Smart Contact Lens Zooms On Demand
Though bifocal and progressive contact lenses are now widely available, they’re still “dumb” devices that require the user to adjust to them. Researchers at the University of California San Diego and the Harbin Institute of Technology in China have now developed a biomimetic soft contact lens that can be made to zoom in and out […]
Low-Cost DIY Pump for Microfluidics Made from Balloons and Nylon Stockings
A collaboration between researchers at RMIT University and the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, both in Melbourne Australia, has resulted in an inexpensive and easily manufactured pressure pump. The simple device, which consists of a latex balloon and nylon stockings, can pump biological samples around microfluidic devices, and is much smaller and […]
New Technology for Multiple Sclerosis Diagnosis and Management
Researchers from the University of Texas at Dallas have developed a novel technology for diagnosing multiple sclerosis (MS). Their work can be used to determine which damaged regions of a patient’s brain have the potential to heal themselves, and which do not. This is an exciting development for Americans at risk and already suffering from […]
Electrical Stimulation Improves Reaction Time, Feels Natural
Many aspects of medicine are now expanding beyond the treatment of disease, including techniques to help make us smarter, stronger, and faster. Our reaction times are often too slow for many tasks, but electrical muscle stimulation can make us grab and push things faster than our brains can will it. The problem with using this […]
Diagnostic Pill Samples Bacteria While Traveling Inside Gut
The microbiome inside our gut contains a wide variety of bacterial species, some of which are a source of disease. Currently, only the lower intestine can be sampled non-invasively to learn about the bacterial flora within, so there’s actually little knowledge about what goes on higher up the GI tract. Researchers at Tufts University have […]
Hydrogels with Flexible Electronics Herald New Medical Possibilities
Scientists around the world are actively using hydrogels as novel materials to interface with the body in a variety of ways. At the same time, the field of flexible electronics has progressed to the point that there’s real demand to integrate electronic components with hydrogels. Now, researchers at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology […]
Using Microparticles to Measure Oxygen in Tissues
The field of tissue engineering is rapidly progressing, in large part thanks to hydrogel scaffolds that provide a comfortable home for new cells. A major issue that researchers bump against is tracking how well oxygen reaches freshly grown cells within such scaffolds, which can indicate how well the new cells are generally functioning. Now, researchers […]
Self-Powered Microrobots Deliver Drugs to Tumors in the Gut
Treating tumors within the GI system is often a difficult challenge, frequently requiring invasive surgery. Scientists at Caltech have now developed self-propelled microrobots that can deliver drugs to precise spots within the intestines, and that can let clinicians monitor and control their activity. Besides drug delivery, the microrobots have the potential to be used in […]
3D Printed Titanium Implants for Severe Spinal Deformities
Most medical implants are manufactured in quantity to cover large groups of people suffering from specific diseases. Those with rare conditions are often left out, but 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, now allows for the production of bespoke devices designed exclusively for individual patients. While 3D printing technology has advanced significantly over the […]
Device for Opioid Overdoses Releases Naloxone Automatically
Opioids can bind to brain receptors that are responsible for breathing, causing hypoventilation, and all too frequently leading to death in those that overdose. Naloxone (aka Narcan) is an antidote that prevents opioids from binding to brain receptors, but when a person does overdose it’s often too late for them to administer the life-saving drug […]
Smart Bandage Pulls Skin Together to Speed Healing
Wounds on the skin are usually treated with bandages that protect the area and keep it moist, but which don’t actively help to promote healing. Researchers at Harvard and McGill universities have now created a mechanotherapy bandage that actually works to close the wound, keeps it protected from microbes, and speeds up healing much faster […]
New Infrared Chemical Imaging Method to Diagnose Cancers
Prostate cancer can be very difficult to diagnose, with way too many patients undergoing surgeries that turn out to be unnecessary. Now, researchers at Purdue University, Boston University, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed an infrared chemical imaging technique that may improve diagnostic studies and in the process cut down on excess surgeries. […]
Learn Best Practices on How Customer-Facing Outreach Can Enhance Consumer Acquisition and Retention at the 9th DMMD, August 5-7
As integrated marketing is evolving from a “campaign-centric” to a “consumer-centric” approach, it is imperative for organizations to implement cross-fertilization reinforcement and touchpoints. Viewing the consumer as a real person versus an email address is one of the reasons why this “genuine” approach to integrated marketing has been increasing from media, devices, and channels to […]