Researchers at Rice University managed to create flexible carbon nanotube fibers that can be incorporated into clothing to function as wearable health monitors. The new thread is highly conductive, but it is washable and strong, allowing it to function as an unobtrusive component of clothing. So far, the researchers have incorporated the fibers int (Read more...)
Tag: Cardiology
Cracking Calcium in Arteries Using Sound Waves: Interview with Shockwave Medical’s Scott Shadiow
Shockwave Medical, a medtech company based in California, has developed a technique called intravascular lithotripsy, which involves delivering sonic waves to calcified plaque in an artery in much the same way that sound waves have been used to treat kidney stones for many years. The idea is to safely crack the calcified deposits so that […]
(Read more...)Photoacoustic Carbon Nanotubes Reveal Dangerous Atherosclerotic Plaques
Researchers at Michigan State University have developed a system that allows the imaging and identification of inflamed atherosclerotic plaques, which are considered to be at risk of rupture. Their system involves administering carbon nanotubes that are preferentially taken up by macrophages and monocytes, which tend to accumulate at inflamed plaqu (Read more...)
Pressure-Sensing Glove to Aid in Stroke Recovery
Researchers at MIT created a sensing glove that can detect small pressuref changes along its surface when a wearer grasps something. The glove is threaded with tiny pressure sensors, which are studded with micropillars that create changes in an electrical signal when they bend and deform. This provides an incredibly sensitive measurement of tactile (Read more...)
Remote Monitoring for Cardiac Patients: Interview with Dr. Waqaas Al-Siddiq, CEO of Biotricity
Biotricity, a medtech company based in California, developed the Bioflux system, a mobile cardiac telemetry device. The system is a three channel ECG monitor, and it enables continuous data collection and data transmission to a call center in the case of anomaly detection. If the detected issue is considered to be serious, a clinician can [… (Read more...)
Ultrasound Patch Monitors Blood Flow
Researchers at the University of California San Diego created an ultrasound patch that can measure blood flow in vessels as deep as 14 cm within the body. The stretchy patch can be applied to the skin and may help clinicians to monitor and diagnose various conditions, including blockages that could cause an infarct. The patch […]
Heart Model Simulates Mechanical Load on Cardiac Tissues
Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, along with collaborators in the Netherlands, have developed a heart model consisting of engineered cardiac muscle tissue that is attached to an elastic material. The design allows the team to mimic the mechanical forces experienced by heart tissue in the body, which should provide them with more accurate d (Read more...)
AI Powered Health Assistant for Seniors: Interview with Ryan Howard, CEO of 100Plus
100Plus, a California medtech company, created a suite of remote patient monitoring technologies. These include a digital weight scale, blood pressure cuff, thermometer, and blood glucose monitor. The company recently launched Ava, an AI powered healthcare assistant that is specifically intended for senior patients who may not be tech savvy or as o (Read more...)
Aortic Occlusion to Enhance Blood Flow to Brain and Heart: Interview with Habib Frost, CEO of Neurescue
Neurescue, a medtech company based in Denmark, created the NEURESCUE system, a balloon catheter designed to occlude the aorta, resulting in a significant increase in blood flow to the heart and brain. The mechanism is intended to provide emergency treatment for patients suffering a hemorrhage or cardiac arrest. Both hemorrhage and cardiac arrest re (Read more...)
Battery-Free Wireless Pacemaker Dissolves Post Treatment
Researchers at Northwestern University and collaborators have developed a temporary cardiac pacemaker that dissolves away in the body into harmless byproducts. The technology avoids the need for leads penetrating the skin as well as follow-up procedures to remove a pacemaker. The device could make temporary pacemaker placement a safer and more conv (Read more...)
Battery-Free Smart Fabrics to Monitor Health
Researchers at Purdue University have developed a technique to create smart garments that can harvest electrical power from nearby Wi-Fi networks and radio waves in a process known as magnetic resonance coupling. This power can then be used to energize on-board electrical systems, including body monitors. The fabrics are water repellent, breathable (Read more...)
Journal Series Amplifies Voices Against Sexual Harassment
A series of articles in JACC: Case Reports aims to give a ‘voice’ to those in cardiology who have experienced discrimination and sexual harassment, and offers some solutions. Medscape Medical News
PerQseal+ for Large Diameter Arterial Closure: Interview with Andrew Glass, CEO of Vivasure Medical
Vivasure Medical, a medtech company based in Galway, Ireland, has developed the PerQseal device, a synthetic implant designed to seal large bore blood vessel punctures. The implant has utility in a wide variety of transcatheter endovascular procedures, such as transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR), thoracic endovascular aneurysm repair (TEV (Read more...)
Cardiac Organoids Self-Organize to Mimic Human Heart
Researchers at the Austrian Academy of Sciences have developed the most realistic cardiac organoids to date. The tiny structures self-organize from pluripotent stem cells to form a hollow chamber that can beat. The method to create the ‘cardioids’ involves stimulating a variety of signaling pathways in stem cells and does not rely on co (Read more...)
Tiny Implantable Ultrasound Chip for Physiological Monitoring
Researchers at Columbia University have developed a microscopic implantable chip for physiological monitoring. It has a total volume of less than 0.1 mm3. To put that in perspective, the chip is as small as a dust mite, and can only be viewed using a microscope. The goal of this research was to create devices that […]
Soft Sensors for Wireless Monitoring During Labor
Researchers at Northwestern University have developed a series of soft sensors that can provide wireless monitoring of pregnant mothers during labor. The sensors are a replacement for the wires and belts typically used for monitoring during labor, and can send data directly to a clinician’s smartphone, opening the possibility of remote monito (Read more...)
Wireless Sensor Measures Deep Tissue Oxygen Levels
Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley have developed an ultrasound-powered implantable sensor that can measure oxygen levels in tissues deep within the body and transmit these data to an external device. The technology could be useful in monitoring transplant viability or oxygen exposure in preterm infants. It also has potential to (Read more...)
Sweat Sensor Warns of Impending COVID-19 Cytokine Storm
Researchers at the University of Texas and EnLiSense, a Texas startup, have developed a skin sweat sensor that can measure cytokine levels continuously for up to 168 hours. The technology has been adapted so that it can detect cytokines involved in the deadly cytokine storms that occur in patients with COVID-19 and other illnesses, such […]
Heart Patch Helps Grow New Vessels Post Myocardial Infarct
Researchers at the Pohang University of Science & Technology (POSTECH) in South Korea have developed a hydrogel patch system that allows for sophisticated sequential release of growth factors that stimulate angiogenesis. The sequential cascade of growth factors mimics the natural process in the body and the researchers hope that the technology (Read more...)
Rapid Compression Device to Prevent Deep Vein Thrombosis
Researchers at Penn Medicine have developed a wearable sleeve that provides rapid pulsatile compression, and aims to mimic the compression our calf muscles experience during walking. The technology, being commercialized by Osciflex, a spin out from Penn Medicine, is intended to prevent deep vein thrombosis in patients who are bed-bound for long per (Read more...)