Scanning the bladder and measuring its volume is a common procedure usually performed by nurses. It may be done for a variety of reasons, but achieving accuracy is key. Catheterization-based methods may be the most accurate, but non-invasive ultrasound is a lot more attractive. With conventional ultrasound one must be very careful to properly gauge […]
Tag: Pediatrics
Virtual Reality Room Helps Kids With Phobias Overcome Fears
Autistic kids that suffer from phobias have a particularly hard time overcoming their fears. Traditional therapies don’t work well, so researchers at Newcastle University in England have been testing an immersive virtual reality system that is already showing great promise at treating serious phobias. The Blue Room virtual reality system is a collaboration between Newcastle […]
Pacifier-Activated Lullaby Helps Preemies Learn to Suck for Milk
Babies born prematurely often have a poorly developed sucking reflex, leaving them struggling to eat. A device called a Pacifier-Activated Lullaby (PAL) is now being tested at the UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital to see whether it can teach preemies to suck for milk through a bit of gentle behavioral modification. Babies love lullabies, and it is […]
QTrobot Enhances Learning Opportunities For Children With Autism
QTrobot, pronounced “cutie robot,” was developed by the Luxembourgian company LuxAI and introduced to early adopters back in 2018. It is a expressive and engaging humanoid robot designed to assist in teaching autistic children essential social skills. One may think: “How can a robot help in the management of a condition characterized by impaired social […]
Tandem’s t:slim X2 Insulin Pump Classified as First Alternate Controller Enabled Infusion Pump
Tandem Diabetes received a brand new classification from the FDA for its t:slim X2 insulin pump. The device is the first in a category known as Alternate Controller Enabled Infusion Pumps (ACE pumps). According to the company, the associated indication is that the pump is “able to reliably and securely communicate with compatible, digitally connected devices, […]
QT Medical’s Personal Cardiac Assistant Lets Patients Conduct Comprehensive ECGs at Home
A variety of health trackers, including the Apple Watch, offer consumers the ability to record their ECG signals. Though the claims about these offerings are mostly accurate, they may be misleading to those that believe these devices mimic the capabilities of in-hospital ECGs. In reality, wrist-worn and other wearable ECG monitors are only single-lead devices […]
Innovative Pill Attaches to Stomach, Releases Insulin, Makes Diabetics Happy
Insulin injections are a reality for millions of people living with diabetes. Unlike many other drugs, insulin, being a protein, cannot be easily put into the form of a conventional pill. Inhaled insulin (afrezza) is an option that is appropriate for some patients, but it hasn’t caught on very well. A team of researchers from […]
Tyto Care Brings the Doctor’s Visit to Home: Interview with Ophir Lotan
Tyto Care is an on-demand telehealth provider based in Israel that hopes to bring all aspects of a doctor’s visit to the home. Beyond the limits of traditional telemedicine, the platform also allows patients to conduct their own physical exam using a device that combines a camera, stethoscope, otoscope, thermometer, and tongue depressor. The idea […]
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 […]
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 the concentration of glucose in a sample. […]
BD Unveils Nano Pen Needle for Accurate Subcutaneous Insulin Injections
BD is releasing its new Nano pen needle designed for achieving consistent depth during subcutaneous injections, particularly for diabetic patients on insulin. Intramuscular injections can occur when a patient applies too much force to many of the existing injection devices. The new BD Nano compensates for this by spreading the load across the injection site […]
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 prototype glucose sensing […]
Abbott Showing Off Its Glucose Monitoring Tech: CES 2019
We didn’t expect to see Abbott at CES 2019, since the show trends toward consumer oriented technologies. But modern glucometers, for example, are some of the most advanced personal electronic devices that people use on a daily basis. Abbott has been a leader in this field and it has allowed diabetic patients a new level […]
Four Ocular Abnormalities Not to Overlook in Children
Even subtle symptoms may herald serious conditions. If missed on eye exams, they can have life-threatening consequences. Medscape Ophthalmology
Willow Breast Pump Gets New Features: CES 2019
At last year’s CES we got to check out a cool new breast pump that makes it sleek and discreet to gather breast milk. It’s actually a wearable pump that quietly works while you go about your day, collecting milk into a special spill-proof container. It discreetly, given proper clothing, fits inside the bra and […]
Miris Human Milk Analyzer Cleared by FDA to Measure Nutritional Content for Donor Milk
Donor human milk is a standard of care in many maternity wards caring for preterm infants. While very effective, the nutritional content of donor milk is often subpar and requires targeted fortification. Miris, based in Uppsala, Sweden, won FDA clearance for its Human Milk Analyzer, a novel device used to test donor breast milk for energy, fat, […]
POPS! one System for Easy Blood Glucose Testing Cleared by FDA
POPS! Diabetes Care, a company based outside of Minneapolis, won FDA clearance for its unusual, but certainly innovative, POPS! one blood glucose monitoring system. The system consists of a device that can (optionally) stick to the back of your smartphone. It is used to take readings, which are immediately shared with and displayed on the […]
Continuous Glucose Measuring Smartwatch, K’Watch Glucose, Expected Soon
PKvitality, a company based outside of Paris, France, has announced that it’s getting ever closer to unveiling the world’s first glucose measuring smartwatch. The K’Watch Glucose, as it’s expected to be called, features the company’s patented SkinTaste technology that samples glucose from the skin and K’apsul biosensor that does the measuring. The biosensor has to […]
Backpack Health’s App for People with Rare Diseases in Developing Countries: Interview with CEO
Backpack Health, a health-tech company based in Boston, has partnered with two organizations specializing in rare diseases, Care Beyond Diagnosis and FYMCA Medical, to bring their mobile and cloud-based health management application to patients with rare diseases living in low-income countries. Rare diseases can be significantly challenging for affected patients, with mountains of paperwork required to […]
DBLG1, a Glucose Management System, Cleared in Europe
Diabeloop, a company based in Grenoble, France, won the European CE Mark of approval for its DBLG1 blood sugar management system for type 1 diabetics. The system combines data gathered from a continuous blood glucose monitor and smart algorithms to drive the activation of an insulin pump. The system can predict glucose levels based on […]