Detecting bacterial infestations within the GI system, particularly using low cost methods, takes so much time that treatment is often administered too late. Clostridium difficile (C. diff) is a particular nasty nuisance that kills many frail patients, and even with a hospital lab it can take up to two days to get the results. Researchers (Read more...)
Tag: Diagnostics
Photoacoustic Imaging Measures Temperature Deep Within Body
When using heat and other forms of radiation to ablate tumors, it is usually difficult to know just how hot the tissues around your target are getting, particularly when working deep within the body. MRI and ultrasound can be useful in many cases, but they have limitations and can produce misleading readings. To have a better […]
TestCard, a $4 Urine Test Read by Your Smartphone
Recently announced as one of the Digital Trends’ Top Tech of CES 2019, TestCard is a UK-based company that allows users to turn their smartphones into a clinical-grade urinalysis kit. The process starts with a postcard-like card mailed directly to the consumer. The card costs about $4 and contains three fold-out urine test strips, each [&hell (Read more...)
New Biosensor Accurately Measures Glucose in Saliva
The iQ Group Global, an Australian consortium, has announced that it developed a biosensor capable of accurately measuring glucose in a person’s saliva. The technology, originally acquired from the University of Newcastle in Australia, uses modified organic thin film transistors, which work in combination with glucose oxidase, to measure (Read more...)
Silicon Photonics Device to Screen for Arterial Stiffness: Interview with Roel Baets and Patrick Segers, Imec and Ghent University
Imec, a research and innovation hub for nanoelectronics and digital technologies based in Belgium, in collaboration with numerous partners, has developed a new medical device to screen for arterial stiffness, a risk-factor for cardiovascular disease. Routine screening of arterial stiffness in a doctor’s office is currently impossible, meaning (Read more...)
Handheld Photonic Device Measures Arterial Stiffness
A collaboration between nine different European research organizations, including the medical device giant Medtronic, has developed a prototype device for quick and easy measurement of arterial stiffness. This is an important development, as arterial stiffness is a biomarker for high blood pressure, but there are no reliable ways of measuring it wi (Read more...)
Painless Microneedle Skin Patch Accurately Senses Glucose
Microneedle patches are a promising way to easily and painlessly deliver a variety of drugs into the body. Yet there’s also a lot of potential to use microneedle patches to sense important biochemicals, glucose being probably the most important target. Researchers at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden have developed a (Read more...)
Diagnostic Blood Tests in Minutes: Interview with Brianna Wronko, Founder and CEO of Group K Diagnostics
We have all had to wait for test results after a doctor’s visit. In cases where a serious disease is suspected, a prolonged waiting period can be one filled with agonizing worry and anxiety. In certain scenarios, receiving medical test results earlier may even positively impact the treatment course – allowing patients to start therapy [ (Read more...)
Patch with Non-Toxic Battery Monitors ECG, Blood Oxygen, Physical Activity
At CES 2019, imec, a Belgian organization, and the Netherlands Organization for Applied Scientific Research, presented their latest vitals monitoring patch. The disposable device has a monitoring lifetime of over a week, but since the battery is made of non-toxic materials there’s not a big environmental impact. The device has a basic ECG bui (Read more...)
Fingernail Sensor and Artificial Intelligence for Monitoring Parkinson’s, Other Diseases
Grip strength, as well as walking speed and gait length, can be indicators of a person’s physical and mental health. A variety of conditions and treatments can be monitored from the grip strength, but such measurements are typically only performed infrequently at the doctor’s office. IBM Research has just developed a sensor that is atta (Read more...)
LetsGetChecked Provides Easy At-Home Lab Testing and Consultations
At-home lab tests are growing in popularity. While many companies focus on specific tests, such as genetic testing or specific screenings, LetsGetChecked, a company with offices in New York, Dublin, and Toronto, hopes to be a central hub that allows people to regularly and affordably check a variety of basic lab work. As with most at-home [&he (Read more...)
Contrast Agent for Optical Coherence Tomography Improves Imaging of Tissues, Vessels
Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an imaging technique that allows ophthalmologists to view the eye’s blood vessels, to study the structure of tissues in various clinical and scientific applications. Though this technology is already widely used, there’s been a constant demand to improve its imaging resolution. Researchers at Stanfo (Read more...)
Smart Contact Lenses are Here: Interview with Prof. Herbert De Smet of Imec
imec, a research and innovation hub for nanoelectronics and digital technologies, has announced a hydrogel-based smart contact lens that incorporates a silicon microchip, integrated LED light, and radiofrequency (RF) antenna for wireless energy transfer. Belgium-based imec claims that the new lens paves the way for integrated sensors or drug delive (Read more...)
Fluorescent Molecular Sensor to Detect Metastatic Cancer Cells
Researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine have developed a molecular sensor that can spot metastatic cancer cells and measure how likely they’re to spread through the body. “Although there are many ways to detect metastasis once it has occurred, there has been nothing available to ‘see’ or ‘measure’ the pote (Read more...)
Tackling Alzheimer’s Biomarkers Using Machine Learning: Interview with IQuity CEO, Dr. Chase Spurlock
Losing one’s memories, and therefore one’s identity, must be a terrifying experience. With a global estimate of almost 50 million people living with dementia, predicted to rise to more than 130 million by 2050, the burden of Alzheimer’s and dementia are indisputable. While there are still no approved drugs for the treatment of Alz (Read more...)
Combining Sound and Light Could Help with Early Ovarian Cancer Diagnosis
Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have developed a diagnostic method involving photoacoustic imaging, a technique that combines ultrasound and laser light. The development may allow clinicians to diagnose ovarian cancer earlier, helping to save lives. “When ovarian cancer is detected at an early, localized stage – stage (Read more...)
Combining Sound and Light Could Help with Early Ovarian Cancer Diagnosis
Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have developed a diagnostic method involving photoacoustic imaging, a technique that combines ultrasound and laser light. The development may allow clinicians to diagnose ovarian cancer earlier, helping to save lives. “When ovarian cancer is detected at an early, localized stage – stage (Read more...)
23andMe’s Pharmacogenetic Test Approved by FDA
The FDA has just approved 23andMe’s Personal Genomic Service (PGS) Pharmacogenetic Reports. This marks the first direct-to-consumer test for pharmacogenetics of enzyme variants that may affect the way patients break down medications. Consumers collect their saliva into 23andMe’s testing kit, mail it to the company’s labs, and then (Read more...)
Near-Infrared Tech for Minimally Invasive Brain Monitoring: Interview with Philippe Dro, CEO of Luciole Medical
Luciole Medical, a medtech company based in Switzerland, has developed near-infrared sensors that can assess levels of tissue oxygenation as well as cerebral blood flow by measuring oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin. The sensors include a skin patch, which measures brain blood flow and oxygen saturation in patients undergoing surgery, and a mi (Read more...)
Microfluidic Chips to Diagnose and Characterize Cancer: Interview with Prof. Fatih Sarioglu, Georgia Tech
Research into microfluidic devices to aid in cancer diagnosis promises huge leaps in making diagnostics easier and faster. Much of this research is focused on chips that can trap circulating tumor cells (CTCs) which are present in blood samples. CTCs are released from a primary tumor and can form metastases in other sites in the […]