Researchers at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland have developed a flexible and stretchable pump for soft robotics. The existence of the device, described in the latest journal Nature, means that soft robots may no longer need to be tethered to rigid and bulky pumps, allowing for greater versatility in soft medica (Read more...)
Tag: Geriatrics
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 (Read more...)
Electric Brain Stimulation Shown to Improve Memory Function
Our memories often seem ephemeral, coming and going without any obvious reasons. Researchers at UCLA seem to have come up with a way to bring some memories back that would probably otherwise have gone missing forever. The team relied on transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a technology that can direct low energy electricity into specific (Read more...)
Electric Brain Stimulation Shown to Improve Memory Function
Our memories often seem ephemeral, coming and going without any obvious reasons. Researchers at UCLA seem to have come up with a way to bring some memories back that would probably otherwise have gone missing forever. The team relied on transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a technology that can direct low energy electricity into specific (Read more...)
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Improves Working Memory
Researchers from Duke University School of Medicine have found that magnetic brain stimulation can help improve working memory. They studied repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), showing that it improved memory task performance in all ages of adults. Given that individuals with Alzheimer’s will more than double by 2050, rTMS ma (Read more...)
Brain Controlled-Hearing Aid Separates Voices in a Crowd
When we are at a party and talking to someone, our brain is able to identify a single speaker’s voice and focus our hearing on it, helping us to listen more closely and ignore the other voices nearby. For the millions of people with hearing impairment who use hearing aids, they often lose this ability, […]
Electric Stimulation Drastically Improves Memory of Older Folks
The performance of our working memory starts to go down right around the time we finish residency. The older we get, the more difficulty we have forming new memories and holding on to them for a long time. Because it’s still a mystery how the memory system of our brains works, a decline in its […]
The Power of Modern Hearing Aids: Interview with Laurel Christensen, Chief Audiology Officer, GN Hearing
Modern hearing aids have to pack a great deal of technology in a tiny package. The batteries, high speed computer chips, speakers, microphones, and antennas have to all fit together and work in unison. They drive multiple sound processing algorithms that can modify how audio is boosted for the unique needs of each individual user. […]
Custom Pill Bottles Thanks to E-Paper Labels
Labels on pill bottles are designed to give the patient the necessary information, such as the drug inside and how often to take it. Prescriptions change, though, and in some cases, such as clinical trials, the regimen can vary significantly from day to day. We recently learned of a relatively new product, an electronic screen […]
Caregivers Want Robots to Take Care of Annoying Dementia Sufferers
People with dementia, as well as those that take care of them, can benefit from a bit of robotic assistance. There are a few robots on the market that are designed to help elderly people around the house, but not too much exists for those suffering from cognitive decline. While there’s been development in this […]
CareAlert, A Non-Intrusive Home Monitoring System: Interview with Fereydoun Taslimi, CEO of SensorsCall
The world’s aging population continues to grow. Today, in the U.S. alone, there are more than 46 million people 65 years and older, accounting for around 15 percent of the population. This is expected to swell to 20 percent by the year 2030. One of the main decisions that we are bound to make as […]
Google’s Live Transcribe and Sound Amplifier to Make Communications Easier for Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Deaf people and others who have trouble hearing are constantly finding themselves in situations in which communicating with other fellow humans is a challenge. Gesturing and writing things down on paper is simple, but slow and frustrating. Google, a part of Alphabet, is hoping to change that with a couple new tools that will be […]
Toilet Seat Automatically Measures Host of Cardiac Parameters to Monitor Heart Health
Getting daily checks of one’s cardiovascular function requires cooperation and commitment on the part of the patient. Monitors have to be put on, the readings recorded, and then shared with physicians or caregivers. While electrocardiogram (ECG) monitors, blood pressure cuffs, and other technologies are readily available for at-home use, they (Read more...)
Electronic Caregiver Offers Modern Medical Alert Pendants: CES 2019
SameDay Security, an at-home security firm, has developed a few offerings to help the elderly and sick people to maintain independence at home. The devices are pretty attractive and offered in a variety of colors and patterns. They monitor people’s activity levels and the accompanying app can help to adhere to medication regimens and to [&hel (Read more...)
Tyto Care Brings the Doctor’s Visit to Home: Seen at CES 2019
Tyto Care is an on-demand telehealth provider that aims to bring all aspects of a doctor’s visit to the home. Beyond the traditional video call of telemedicine, the platform allows patients to conduct their own physical exam using a kit with a camera, stethoscope, otoscope, thermometer, and tongue depressor. The platform, which has raised $54 (Read more...)
OhmniLabs Uses Robots to Make Telepresence a Reality: Seen at CES 2019
Although video chat has been a key form of long-distance communication for many years, it can be cumbersome and feel artificial. OhmniLabs uses robots to transform simple video chat into “telepresence,” a more natural and immersive form of communication. The Santa Clara, California-based company designs rolling robots with mounted displ (Read more...)
Kepler Vision Technologies Monitors Elderly at Home: CES 2019
An extra set of eyes can be important in manufacturing, air traffic control, medicine, and just about any other field. The elderly living alone at home can also benefit from someone maintaining an eye on them, while keeping their lives private. Enter cameras, computer vision, pattern recognition, and other powerful technologies, and you can have [& (Read more...)
Stanley Black & Decker Getting Into Healthcare: CES 2019
TThe names Black & Decker and Stanley conjure thoughts of sawing wood planks, drilling holes, as well as mixing up dough for your secret bread recipe. They certainly don’t make one think of medical devices. But the joined company, called Stanley Black & Decker, now has a division called STANLEY Healthcare that already has a (Read more...)
Medically Home Brings The Hospital Room to The House
Modern technological advancements have revolutionized the delivery of mail, how finances are handled, and many other spheres of our lives. We used to go to the bank and post office quite often, but most people deal with these places from a distance now. Medical care still mostly requires patients to visit their hospital, clinic, or […]
Domalys Fall Prevention System at CES 2019
Domalys is a French company we discovered at CES 2019 that develops technologies to help the elderly with everyday life. In particular, the company created its Aladin smart lamp that monitors an elderly person while they’re at home, detects abnormal patterns in activity, and aims to prevent falls and other common injuries. The device lights [ (Read more...)