Medtronic has filed for FDA approval for its InterStim Micro neurostimulator and the accompanying InterStim SureScan MRI leads. The rechargeable device delivers sacral neuromodulation therapy to treat conditions such as overactive bladder, fecal incontinence, unobstructed urinary retention, and urinary urge incontinence. Along with the InterStim Micro, the new leads allow patients with the implanted system […]
Tag: Radiology
Low Power MRI Helps Image Lungs, Brings Costs Down
Modern clinical MRIs usually have magnetic field strengths of 1.5 or 3.0 Tesla. These are pretty powerful magnets and it’s the reason that these devices are very expensive. While such strengths have been standard for a long time, the internal hardware and software beyond the magnets have been improving steadily. Now, researchers affiliated with the […]
Deep Learning Spots Organs on CT Scans to Prevent Radiation Damage
Radiotherapy is a well established method for attacking tumors within the body. There are a number of techniques that are used to administer radiation to a lesion, but they all come with the risk of injuring nearby tissues and organs. Gamma beams and other directed high energy devices result in the exposure of all the […]
Gore CARDIOFORM ASD Cleared in Europe for Atrial Septal Defects
Gore won the European CE Mark for its GORE CARDIOFORM ASD Occluder, a device designed for percutaneous, transcatheter closure of ostium secundum atrial defects (ASDs). The occluder recently completed a clinical study involving 125 patients with ASD, ranging from 2 to 84 years of age, all of whom were successfully implanted with the GORE CARDIOFORM […]
Epica SeeFactorCT3 Multi-Modality System Wins FDA Clearance
Epica, a company based in San Clemente, California, won FDA clearance for its SeeFactorCT3 system that combines computed tomography (CT), fluoroscopy, and digitial radiography (DR) into a single device. It is intended for use in diagnostic, interventional, and intraoperative procedures mostly involving the head, neck, and extremities. As such, it is expected to be used […]
New Imaging Technique Reveals Deep Tumors, Helps Attack Them
Tumors deep inside the body can be very difficult to spot, track, and study. The brain, being surrounded by a thick skull, is particularly challenging to image using light, so MRI and CT are currently the go-to imaging modalities when looking at deeply seated tissues. Now, researchers at Stanford University are reporting the development of […]
Hyperspectral Surgical Microscope to See Cancer Cells in Real Time
Since internal cancerous tumors usually look exactly like the healthy tissues around them, frozen section analysis is used during and after surgeries to confirm that the entirety of a tumor has been removed. This is a slow process that often leads to patients requiring follow-up procedures. Researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas have […]
Loop-X Surgical Imaging Robot Unveiled
Brainlab, out of Germany, just unveiled its flagship Loop-X mobile intraoperative imaging robot specifically designed for spinal surgical procedures. Developed by medPhoton, an Austrian company, the device is now the core of Brainlab’s imaging offerings. The device offers 2D and 3D intraprocedural imaging, moving as necessary along with the surgical workflow and staying out of […]
New Chip for Microwave Imaging of Body
Today’s clinicians are limited to a few imaging modalities, primarily X-ray, CT, MRI, and ultrasound. Microwaves, in principle, can also be used as a useful way to look inside the body. Microwave radiation is non-ionizing, so should be safer than X-rays, but in practice microwave imagers, because of the electronics inside, have remained bulky tabletop […]
Synchron Announces First Successful Clinical Implantation of Stentrode
Synchron, a spin-off from the University of Melbourne in Australia, has announced the first successful implantation of the Stentrode minimally invasive neural interface device in a person. The device is part of the Synchron brain-computer interface and combines the minimally invasive delivery of a vascular stent with the functionality of a neural implant. The company […]
Samsung Unveils Hera I10 Ultrasound System
Samsung is unveiling its new Hera I10 ultrasound system designed for ob/gyn applications. The system integrates a motorized examination chair that can adjust from 18.9″ to a height of 38.6″, so patients don’t have to put up with a conventional exam table. A large high-def display screen can be moved around as the clinician prefers […]
Implantable Nanolasers for Tissue Imaging, Neurotherapy
A variety of imaging techniques and technologies, such as optogenetics, could benefit from devices that can emit visible laser light from inside tissues. Conventional lasers are too large, while nanolasers tend to be inefficient, heating up too much, and typically require damaging ultraviolet light to power them. Now, researchers at Northwestern and Columbia Universities have […]
Early Bird, an Internal Bleeding Detector, Now Available In U.S.
Saranas, a Houston, Texas firm, is releasing its novel Early Bird bleeding monitoring system in the United States, following FDA de novo approval of the device. Intended for use during minimally invasive vascular procedures, the Early Bird helps to identify dangerous events such as ruptured or dissected vessels. Such incidents can result from using large […]
FDA Clears Siemens Artis icono Angiography Systems
Siemens Healthineers won FDA clearance for the ARTIS icono angiography systems that are designed for use in a variety of procedure types. The ARTIS icono 2D/3D biplane system is intended for neuroradiology and abdominal imaging while the ARTIS icono floor has a single fluoroscope and is designed for vascular, interventional cardiology, surgical, and oncology procedures. […]
Siemens Healthineers Unveils Two New Radiotherapy Planning CT Scanners
Siemens Healthineers unveiled two new CT scanners specifically designed for radiation therapy planning. The SOMATOM go.Sim and SOMATOM go.Open Pro are 64-slice and 128-slice devices, respectively, and feature an 85 cm opening suitable for larger patients. To make patient prep easier and faster, the scanners come with an optional DirectLasers system mounted on top of […]
GE Healthcare’s Artificial Intelligence FDA Cleared to Help Spot Collapsed Lung
Admitted patients often have to wait a number of hours for a radiologist to review their chest X-ray, even though it may be marked as urgent or STAT. That’s because way too many are marked as such in most clinics. Pneumothorax, or collapsed lung, can go unnoticed in the meantime, leading to a dangerous amount […]
MRI Can Now See Molecular Content of Our Brains
As we age, the molecular composition of our brain changes. This is a natural process, but it can also be associated with the presence of disease. Currently, there’s no practical way to study the molecular changes within living humans, and post-mortem studies are limited in the scientific information they can provide. Now, scientists at the […]
Doctors Perform First Minimally Invasive Remote Robotic Cardiac Procedure
Clinicians in India have teamed up to demonstrate the feasibility of having a physician remotely perform percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures. Using the CorPath GRX, an FDA cleared cath lab robot that lets physicians stay away from the radiation produced by fluoroscopes, the team from the Apex Heart Institute in Ahmedabad positioned the control mechanism […]
Sensor Monitors Brain Aneurysms Post Treatment
Aneurysms within the brain are extremely dangerous, although there are therapies available such as stents and blood flow diverters. Even after treatment, a cerebral aneurysm can continue developing and how it heals cannot be predicted. Monitoring a treated vessel deep within the brain would provide physicians with the ability to act in situations that would […]
Tourette Syndrome Treated with Functional MRI
Researchers at Yale University have for the first time showed that it is possible to control the symptoms of Tourette Syndrome using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The researchers recruited twenty one 11 to 19 year-olds and used real-time fMRI neurofeedback (rt-fMRI-NF), a technology that lets patients monitor their own brain activity, to control the […]