Vektor Medical, a medtech company based in San Diego, created the vMap system, a mapping solution for cardiac arrhythmias. The system is the first to identify arrhythmia sources anywhere in the heart, including the septal wall, outflow tracts, and all four chambers. The company reports that the technology takes less than three minutes to provide […]
Tag: Cardiology
vMap Mapping Technology for Cardiac Arrhythmias: Interview with Mike Monko, CEO of Vektor Medical
Vektor Medical, a medtech company based in San Diego, created the vMap system, a mapping solution for cardiac arrhythmias. The system is the first to identify arrhythmia sources anywhere in the heart, including the septal wall, outflow tracts, and all four chambers. The company reports that the technology takes less than three minutes to provide […]
Wearable Sensor Uses Kirigami to Improve Skin Contact
Researchers at Osaka Prefecture University in Japan developed a wearable and wireless electrocardiogram monitor that employs kirigami, an ancient art of folding and cutting paper, to ensure better skin contact, stretchability, and breathability. The kirigami design lets the researchers minimize the size of their sensor and the technology allows for long-term vitals measurements with wireless […]
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 navigate through some of the smallest airways in our lungs. At present, a bronchoscope is used to investigate the lungs, but this cannot pass into very […]
Smartphone App Calculates Genetic Risk of Coronary Artery Disease
Researchers at the Scripps Research Institute in California have developed a smartphone app that can calculate a user’s genetic risk of coronary artery disease. The app can import genetic information from a commonly used genetic testing service, 23andMe, and provide a personalized risk assessment of coronary artery disease. In tests so far, users receiving a […]
Acoustic Fabric Listens to Heart and Breathing, Works as Hearing Aid
Researchers at MIT have created an “acoustic fabric” that can listen to its surroundings and convert the vibrations made by sound into electrical signals, much like the human ear or a microphone. The technology consists of piezoelectric fibers that are woven into the fabric, and the resulting machine-washable material could prove useful for a variety […]
Modified Red Blood Cells for COVID-19 Vaccination
Researchers at McMaster University in Ontario, Canada created engineered red blood cells to act as a new COVID-19 vaccine technology. The cell membranes have been studded with the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, and in experiments the researchers have conducted in mice the cells can trigger an immune response with minimal side-effects. The team reports that the […]
Humanoid Robot Measures Blood Pressure with a Touch
Researchers at Simon Fraser University in Canada unveiled a humanoid robot that can measure blood pressure by touching a patient’s chest. The robot uses sensors on its fingertips to perform the measurements. Inspired by blood-sucking leeches, the dry electrode sensors infer blood pressure by combining electrocardiogram (ECG) and photoplethysmogram (PPG) readings, although happily, they don’t […]
Lab-Designed “Fish” Could Pave the Way for Artificial Hearts
Researchers at Harvard University have created a fish-like construct from human stem cell-derived cardiac muscle. The structure can beat and swim autonomously, and is inspired by zebrafish. So far, the researchers have shown that the fish can survive and swim for over 100 days, and they hope these new structures could provide insights into cardiac […]
The Slimmest ECG Ever Created: A Review
A couple of weeks ago, AliveCor, a leading innovator in the FDA-cleared personal electrocardiogram (ECG) technology space, announced the launch of the KardiaMobile Card. The KardiaMobile Card is the slimmest and smallest self-contained, commercially available ECG that has been created to date. It is the size of a standard credit card, and is able to […]
‘Retinal Age Gap’ Linked to Arterial Stiffness and CVD Risk
Retinal age gap, defined as age predicted from the fundus image minus chronologic age, is associated with the arterial stiffness index and may be a novel biomarker for subclinical CVD. First Look
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 pressure. The novel device represents a new way to measure vitals, and contains two commercial photoplethysmography (PPG) sensors that operate at two different points on the finger. This approach allows […]
Pop-Up Sensors Measure Electronic Signals in Cardiac Cells
Researchers at University of California San Diego have developed a tiny ‘pop-up’ sensor that can measure the electronic signals propagating inside cardiac cells. The technology consists of tiny spike-like protrusions that can penetrate cell membranes without causing damage, and which can detect electrical signals within individual cells and between cells in 3D tissue samples. The […]
O2Ring Keeps an Eye on Your Blood Oxygen Level: A Medgadget Review
We have all been living through a life-altering pandemic. As a result, words such as “oxygenation” and “pulse oximetry” have become mainstream and the general public has increased the use of pulse oximeters. This should come as no surprise since hypoxia (i.e., low blood oxygen level) is one of the hallmarks of COVID-19 pneumonia. Today, […]
New Wearable Detects Respiratory Exacerbations: Interview with Dr. Maria Artunduaga, CEO of Respira Labs
Respira Labs, a medtech company based in California, created the Sylvee sensor, an adhesive patch that the user wears on their lower rib cage, and which monitors respiratory health. The device works through acoustic resonance, whereby it emits sound into the chest cavity and analyzes the echoed vibrations. The measured data provide information on lung […]
Wireless Blood Pressure and Hemodynamic Monitoring: Interview with Jeff Pompeo, CEO, Caretaker Medical
Caretaker Medical, a company based in Virginia, developed the VitalStream wireless patient monitor, and the company recently announced that the device has received FDA clearance. The technology is intended to improve on traditional blood pressure cuffs that provide only a snap-shot of blood pressure data, while being an alternative, in many cases, over invasive arterial […]
A Review of Central Retinal Artery Occlusion
Philippe Gabriel Steg, MD, discusses a recent review of central retinal artery occlusion for cardiologists who may not be familiar with the condition. theheart.org on Medscape
POEMS Electro-Optical Cardiac Stimulator to Study Arrhythmias
At the University of Bern in Switzerland, researchers have developed the Panoramic Opto-Electrical Measurement and Stimulation (POEMS) system, which allows them to conduct advanced optogenetic experiments with mouse hearts. The device, which contains a volume into which a mouse heart can be placed, lets the Swiss team stimulate various cell types using light, and then […]
Carbon Nanotube Thread Lets Clothes Monitor Health
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 into a […]
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 […]