Medtronic won EU regulatory clearance to introduce its InterStim Micro neurostimulator and InterStim SureScan MRI leads. The devices are used to deliver sacral neuromodulation therapy to treat overactive bladder (OAB), fecal incontinence, and non-obstructive urinary retention. The InterStim Micro is a much tinier version of Medtronic’s InterS (Read more...)
Tag: Urology
Smartphone Camera Test for Urinary Tract Infections
Researchers at the University of Bath have developed a simple point-of-care test for urinary tract infections that uses a smartphone camera. The system can rapidly detect the presence of E. coli in urine samples and could guide doctors in their decision to prescribe antibiotics, ensuring appropriate patient care and avoiding the overuse of antimicr (Read more...)
Samsung Unveils New RS85 Prestige Ultrasound System
At the RSNA conference in Chicago, Samsung unveiled a new high-end ultrasound, the RS85 Prestige. Based on the RS85, the system comes with a new imaging architecture as well as a set of features designed to expand the system’s capabilities and improve diagnostic accuracy. So-called “Crystal Architecture” within the RS85 Prestige r (Read more...)
Siemens Unveils AI Apps for Automatic MRI Image Segmentation
Siemens Healthineers is releasing a couple of AI-driven and cloud-based software applications, one for the brain and one for the prostate, that automate a great deal of the manual tasks that radiologists have to perform. Both of the applications can be used with data coming from any MRI machine, so can be deployed by just […]
National, Universal Living Donor Kidney Registry and At-Home Living Donor Testing Kit: Interview with David Fleming, President and CEO of DLA
The Fresenius Medical Care Foundation (FMCF), which is the nonprofit arm of Fresenius Medical Care North America (FMCNA), has teamed up with Donate Life America (DLA), another non-profit, to create a universal living donor kidney registry and at-home living donor testing kits. Approximately 30 million people in the United States are affected by kid (Read more...)
Siemens Healthineers Unveil SOMATOM X.cite Premium CT Scanner
Siemens Healthineers won FDA clearance and is releasing its brand new SOMATOM X.cite premium single-source CT scanner. The device, along with a high-end X-ray tube and other enhancements, features the company’s new myExam Companion technology that can intelligently adapt each scan to optimize a number of variables. The system asks a number of (Read more...)
Avatera Robot Cleared in Europe for Minimally Invasive Laparoscopies
A German company called avateramedical GmbH won European regulatory approval for its avatera robot-assisted, minimally invasive surgical system. The CE Mark was issued separately for all the system’s components, including the control unit, the robot itself, as well as instruments, an endoscope, and sterile parts that accompany the avatera. To (Read more...)
Butterfly Network Expands Applications for Smartphone-Connected Ultrasound: Interview
Butterfly Network, the digital health unicorn democratizing medical imaging, is continuing to add new applications for its handheld, single probe, smartphone-connected ultrasound technology. The Butterfly iQ, the multi-purpose pocket-sized ultrasound, won FDA clearance a couple years ago and earlier this year received the CE Mark, clearing it for d (Read more...)
Surgeons Succeed In Implanting Donor Kidney Using Robot Through Single Port
Surgeons at the Cleveland Clinic managed to implant a donor kidney into a patient using a surgical robot, and all through one small incision. The technique, in which instruments as well as the donor kidney can be passed through a four centimeter (1.6 inch) wide incision, is designed to make it easier to perform transplants […]
XACT Robotic Needle Navigation System Cleared in U.S.
XACT Robotics, an Israeli company, just announced winning FDA clearance for its robotic needle steering and insertion system for percutaneous procedures. Used to perform procedures such as biopsies and ablations, the XACT device provides a great deal of precision when advancing needles towards hard to reach targets. Breathing, for example, greatly (Read more...)
Tiny Medical Imaging Sensor Sets Guinness World Record
OmniVision Technologies, a Santa Clara, California firm, just announced that it has won the Guinness World Record for “The Smallest Commercially Available Image Sensor”. The OV6948 sensor was designed for use in catheters and endoscopes, allowing these devices to be as small as possible while also providing high quality imaging from wit (Read more...)
Medtronic’s Tiny New InterStim Micro Neurostimulator Submitted to FDA
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 Mi (Read more...)
Tactra Penile Prosthesis Stands Up As Needed
Boston Scientific is releasing its new Tactra malleable penile prosthesis, a device that provides a new option for treating erectile dysfunction. It is designed to reproduce a natural erection thanks to a dual-layer silicone construction and Nitinol (a nickel titanium alloy), which is a shape-memory material that can easily transition between two d (Read more...)
Swiss Scientists Print World’s Smallest Stent
In rare cases, some children, often still in the womb, develop urethral strictures that make it difficult or impossible to empty the bladder. Typically, a surgical procedure is performed to remove the narrowed section of the urethra, with the open ends being sewed together. This is traumatic for the children and can be difficult for […]
New Infrared Chemical Imaging Method to Diagnose Cancers
Prostate cancer can be very difficult to diagnose, with way too many patients undergoing surgeries that turn out to be unnecessary. Now, researchers at Purdue University, Boston University, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed an infrared chemical imaging technique that may improve diagnostic studies and in the process cut down on exc (Read more...)
Potrero Medical Receives CE Mark for the Accuryn® Monitoring System.
The company received its FDA clearance in 2016 when it transformed the traditional urinary catheter into a smart sensing platform that helps to accurately monitor vital signs in real-time, such as urine output (UO) and intra-abdominal pressure (IAP). Traditional urinary catheters have issues draining urine from the bladder, causing inaccurate UO me (Read more...)
Canon Releases Aplio a-series Budget Ultrasounds
Canon Medical is releasing a new line of ultrasounds, called the Aplio a-series. Presented at this year’s American Society of Echocardiography’s annual meeting, the Aplio a450 and Aplio a550 are designed to be competitively priced while offering multi-purpose advanced imaging, including cardiac imaging. Built with some features taken fr (Read more...)
Smart Diaper Detects Urinary Tract Infections
Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are dangerous for infants and the elderly. While the onset of UTIs generally involves pain and other symptoms, young children are not able to describe how they’re feeling, while the elderly may suffer from neurodegenerative conditions that reduce sensation in the affected area. Moreover, it’s difficult to (Read more...)
World’s First Surgical Vending Machine
Xenco Medical, a company that makes disposable spinal tools and implants, is unveiling a vending machine for tracking and dispensing these devices. Clinicians have a huge touchscreen display to choose what they’d like to retrieve out of the machine. The same display can be used to get some specs on the various devices and watch […]
Levita Magnetic Surgical System Cleared by FDA for Prostatectomies
Minimally invasive surgical procedures are potentially safer, easier on patients during recovery, and can even reduce the cost burden on hospitals, when compared with conventional open surgeries. There are still serious risks that are involved, in large part arising from the laparoscopy sites that need to be punched in the abdomen through which ins (Read more...)