Qualcomm, the developer of mobile processors and more, is promoting the use of virtual reality, and in the process its Snapdragon technology, through the release of a medical app. It just unveiled the Think F.A.S.T. virtual reality app that trains medical students and others to diagnose signs of a stroke. As the name implies, it […]
Tag: Neurology
Mental Work, an Artistic Installation Involving Brain-Computer Interfaces (Video)
At the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in Switzerland, a nifty art installation will be on show in the coming days that will be a part experiment and partly a demonstration of brainwave reading technology. It will involve an electroencephalography headset being connected to a motorized wheel via a computer. People will be controlling […]
Electrically Stimulating a Specific Brain Region using Ultrafine Wires Enhances Memory
Neuroscientists at UCLA have found that electrically stimulating a specific area of the brain using ultrafine wires enhances memory in epilepsy patients. If the technique can enhance memory in other patients, it might help with conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease. Our memory naturally declines with age, and in conditions such as Alzheimer’s, people can suffer […]
OptiScanner 5000 Cleared in U.S. for Continuous Glucose Monitoring in ICU
OptiScan Biomedical, a company based in Hayward, California, won FDA clearance to introduce its OptiScanner 5000 in the U.S. The device is intended for use in intensive care units to continuously monitor blood plasma glucose levels, something the OptiScanner 5000 can do accurately without having to be regularly calibrated. The device works via an integrated […]
Abbott Releases Proclaim DRG Dorsal Root Ganglion Stimulator for Chronic Pain
Abbott is releasing in the U.S. its Proclaim DRG neurostimulation system to fight chronic pain in patients with complex regional pain syndrome in their legs. The product consists of an implantable neuromodulator that stimulates the dorsal root ganglion (DRG), an Apple iPad for programming the device, and an iPod touch for the patient control of […]
Improved Brain Organoids for Zika Virus Research
Researchers at UCLA have developed a method to produce improved brain organoids, or “mini brains,” that they claim mimic the structure of the human brain more closely than previous attempts. The investigators used the organoids to study how the Zika virus infects and destroys brain tissue, and identify potential treatments, but the mini brains could […]
FDA Gives First Clearance to Siemens High-Field 7 Tesla MRI Scanner
Siemens Healthineers won FDA clearance to introduce its 7 Tesla MRI scanner, the MAGNETOM Terra. The device won European regulatory approval in August, kicking off an age of high-field MRI scanning that produces imaging details previously unavailable in a clinical setting. Previously, only scanners with a field strength of 3 Tesla were the most powerful […]
LivaNova’s New SenTiva Neurostimulator for Epilepsy FDA Approved
LivaNova, a UK firm, won FDA approvals for its newest vagus nerve stimulation system for treating epilepsy in patients as young as four years old. The system, which includes the SenTiva implantable neurostimulator and the VNS Therapy Programming system, monitors brain activity and delivers therapy when it believes a seizure may be imminent. During therapy […]
Health 2.0 Fall Conference: SleepTech Summit Exhibit Hall Companies
A unique track at this year’s Health 2.0 Fall Conference is a SleepTech Summit focusing on innovations that enhance or improve a person’s ability to achieve a quicker, longer, and more refreshing sleep. As part of the main exhibit hall, six sleep-related companies were demoing their devices and technologies, and Medgadget had a chance to […]
Magnetic Eyelid Tracker to Help Diagnose Some Diseases
Believe it or not, the way we blink our eyelids can be influenced by neurologic conditions, autoimmune diseases, and other factors. In order to take advantage of this knowledge, though, one needs a device that can accurately measure the movement of the eyelids. At Technion-Israel Institute of Technology researchers have designed just such an apparatus, which […]
World’s Densest Neural Probe to Power Brain-Computer Interfaces, Implants
Imec, a nanotechnology and digital technology research institution in Belgium, has developed the world’s densest neural probe. The ability to build ever more complex and capable brain-computer interfaces and neural implants requires being able to interface with as many neurons as possible. The new neural probe is so densely packed with electrodes that individual neurons […]
Nintendo Wii Now Used to Improve Lives of Parkinson’s Patients
Researchers from Purdue University, Indiana University, and the University of Calgary have developed and are testing a set of video games to help improve the everyday lives of people with Parkinson’s disease. The team relied on a Nintendo Wii video game platform coupled with the Wii Balance Board to run games in which a player moves […]
Smartfoam Can Measure Impacts in Football Helmets
Biomedical engineers at Brigham Young University have developed a nanocomposite “smartfoam” lining for football helmets, which measures impacts and can help coaches know if a player may have sustained a brain injury. Football players risk concussions during games. If a player is involved in a collision, it can be difficult to know whether they should […]
Arkis CerebroFlo EVD Drainage Catheter for Cerebrospinal Fluid Cleared by FDA
Arkis BioSciences, a young medical technology company out of Knoxville, Tennessee, won FDA clearance for its CerebroFlo external ventricular drainage catheter. The device indicated for positioning within the ventricular cavity of the brain and establishing a drainage channel to release cerebrospinal fluid. The company touts the use of Endexo, a coating material from Interface Biologics (Toronto, […]
Medtronic’s Intellis Spinal Cord Neurostimulation System Released in U.S.
Medtronic won FDA approval and is releasing in the U.S. its Intellis spinal cord neurostimulation platform, which includes the world’s smallest fully implantable spinal cord neurostimulator. The system delivers both high-dose and low-dose therapy, depending on the patient’s needs, and tracks patient activity to help physicians improve how the therapy targets individual’s pain. It is made […]
Smartphone App to Help Diagnose Concussions Anywhere and Without Expensive Equipment
Concussions are important to detect promptly. Much too often those that are affected go on doing what they were doing, blissfully unaware of being impaired and in serious danger for other injuries and oncoming symptoms of the brain trauma. Now a team at University of Washington has created a smartphone app that tracks the movement of […]
Neuropace Epileptic Seizure Control System: Interview with Dr. Martha Morrell, CMO of NeuroPace
People with certain types of epilepsy may have the option to use a therapy that doesn’t include drugs. The RNS system from Neuropace, a company out of Mountain View, California, monitors the brain for signs of an oncoming seizure and stimulates it to disrupt the process. It has been approved in the U.S. for about […]
MRI Inside Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: Interview with Uri Rapoport, CEO of Aspect Imaging
The smallest patients may require numerous imaging scans, including MRIs of the brain, in order to receive proper care so they can graduate from the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). MRI machines are usually situated far away from the NICU, requiring moving fragile dependent patients sometimes across the entire hospital and up and down multiple floors. […]
EU Gives First Approval for Ultra-High-Field MRI Scanner, The Siemens Magnetom Terra
Siemens Healthineers just won the first European regulatory approval for an ultra-high-field MRI scanner to be used in clinical practice. The Magnetom Terra sports a magnetic field strength of 7 Tesla, which is considerably more powerful than 3 Tesla, the current high-end standard. MRIs of such strength have been used in research hospitals for years, […]
Software Predicts Dementia from Amyloid PET Scans
Scientists at McGill University in Canada created a piece of software that can analyze images taken during an amyloid PET scan and provide an estimate of the chances of patients developing dementia. Alzheimer’s is associated with the buildup of amyloid plaques within the brain, but interpreting their location and concentrations into clinically useful information is […]