Pacemakers have a range of different functions, not all of which are needed for every patient – switching off unnecessary features could help extend the battery life of the devices by several years.
Cardiac imaging is evolving, and new techniques continue to uncover the secrets of the heart for cardiologists who know how to use them. At the ESC 2025 Congress in Madrid, four experts explored cutting-edge developments across different modalities. Ranging from AI-assisted ultrasound image acquisition and accelerated MRI protocols to advanced prognostic tools for CT and nuclear imaging, these…
Using ultrasound imaging, researchers measure the wall thickness of the aorta from within a patient's body, to predict with higher accuracy whether an aneurysm will rupture or not.
Remote monitoring via microfluidic platforms, AI-assisted sensor systems, and more: Attendees of the Labmed Forum at Medica saw impressive examples on how wearable technology is becoming a transformative force in laboratory medicine to improve real-time monitoring of patients, covering widespread conditions such as diabetes, asthma and COPD. With an emphasis on remote monitoring, devices are…
Machine learning (ML) for personalised care, large language models for empathy training of cardiologists, wearable sensor data for better screening, and more: Digital technologies hold great potential to improve diagnosis and treatment of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). At the ESC 2024 cardiology congress in London, four experts explored the benefits of new solutions and pointed out…
Cyberhealth threats such as the hacking of a medical implant are of real concern as technology moves toward smart, wirelessly connected implants. A new security protocol aims to protect these devices.
New AI-enabled systems, intelligent software, and imaging cloud services for improved radiology workflows: Royal Philips announces its solutions that will be showcased at ECR 2025 in Vienna.
A sensor that measures forces passing through the hip joint could help surgeons assess and balance the soft tissues before performing hip implant surgery, leading to more accurate implant positioning.
Korean researchers have developed a new type of 'smart' surgical suture that monitors the recovery process of a wound. This could improve orthopedic or general medical rehabilitation, the team hopes.
A new bioelectronic sensor enables continuous monitoring of bladder function. This could be a game-changer for people with paralysis, spina bifida, bladder cancer or end-stage bladder disease.
Medical Taiwan, the premier international expo for medical, health, and care industries organized by TAITRA, is scheduled to be held at Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center Hall 2 (TaiNex2) from June 20th to 22nd, 2024.
Researchers have developed an aero-elastic pressure sensor to provide increased precision and reliability across medical applications, such as minimally-invasive surgeries and implantable sensors.
Researchers from Queen’s University Belfast have created personalised 4D printed “smart” implants for breast cancer management - a first for this technology.
Post-pandemic problems, ageing societies, the impact of climate change on human health: To find solutions for new and ongoing healthcare challenges, thinking outside the box is crucial. This year’s Medical Taiwan Health & Care Expo took this approach to heart: True to its motto “beyond healthcare”, the event showcased a wide range of innovative products, promising start-up presentations…
Newly developed “smart” coatings for surgical orthopedic implants can monitor strain on the devices to provide early warning of implant failures while killing infection-causing bacteria.
Researchers at Linköping, Lund, and Gothenburg universities in Sweden have successfully grown electrodes in living tissue using the body’s molecules as triggers.
Innovative gastrointestinal imaging, medical panel PCs with hygiene optimisation, smartphone-based diagnostic tools, and sustainable hardware setups: At Medica 2022, manufacturers from Taiwan again showed their capability to adapt and provide solutions for a world radically changed by the Covid-19 pandemic. Under the “Taiwan Excellence” banner, outstanding products from the island nation’s…
The portfolio Philips presented at ECR 2022 revealed that the company not only advanced their products, but also listened to medical professionals and patients – and took their feedback to heart.
Spinal fusion—fusing two vertebrae together—can treat a wide variety of spinal disorders. A patient-specific 3D-printed smart metamaterial implant doubles as sensor to monitor spinal healing.
Wireless bioresorbable pacemaker bypasses need to extract non-biodegradable leads, eliminating additional risk to the patient.
Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a smart stent that can monitor hemodynamic parameters. The wireless and battery-free device can transmit the data to the outside of the body.
More than 15 billion batteries are sent to landfill sites every year – technology that converts glucose and oxygen into electricity has the potential to reduce this waste and serve as a sustainable alternative power source for medical devices.
To detect wound complications as soon as they happen, a team of researchers has invented a smart suture that is battery-free and can wirelessly sense and transmit information from deep surgical sites.
A new technology solution which will provide low-power systems for use in bionic eyes, has been jointly developed by academics from the Harbin Institute of Technology in China and Northumbria University.
Since Compamed could only be held digitally last year, due to the pandemic, the event now takes place publicly again. Almost 500 registrations from exhibitors prove that there is a high level of interest from medical technology suppliers – a huge step towards reaching normality again.
Wearable technology has become an important part of medicine, from tracking vital signs to disease diagnosis. In surgery, wearable technologies can now assist, augment, and provide a means of patient assessment before, during and after surgical procedures. Wearable technologies are applied before the patient even reaches the operating room, for example in prehabilitation, i.e. pre-treatment…
Customizable to individual patients and requiring less than 10 minutes to prepare and use, new surgical implant coating prevented 100% of infections in mice.
A material that is particularly toxic when bacteria are present in its environment? Physicists from the University of Augsburg, together with colleagues from Hamburg and Munich, have developed just such an "smart" coating. In the future, it could help prevent complications in the healing of endoprostheses. The coating also offers further advantages: It is extremely wear-resistant and…
Healthcare is going digital worldwide at an incredibly rapid pace. More and more applications for prevention, diagnostics and therapy are being made into apps (with matching hardware) for smartphones and tablets or are even available as wearables for direct use on the body. Digitalisation is also striding forward in Germany, where doctors, therapists and patients still take a fairly analogue…
Artificial intelligence clinics and rehab bikes, exoskeletons and stylish protections masks – healthcare in Taiwan has many faces and facets as the international medical & healthcare exhibition Medical Taiwan in Taipei will show from 27 to 30 June 2019. We visited participating companies and hospitals to give you a sneak preview of some of the highlights that might well create a buzz in…
Smart knee implants may soon be a reality thanks to research conducted by a team including faculty at Binghamton University, State University of New York. Knee replacement surgery is the most common joint replacement procedure, with the number of surgeries increasing every year. Many of those surgeries are done to replace an older implant or one that has worn out. Increasingly, this surgery is…
Researchers at McMaster University have solved a vexing problem by engineering surface coatings that can repel everything, such as bacteria, viruses and living cells, but can be modified to permit beneficial exceptions. The discovery holds significant promise for medical and other applications, making it possible for implants such as vascular grafts, replacement heart valves and artificial joints…
The need to ensure that laboratory medicine can meet the future challenges of a rapidly changing healthcare environment sits at the core of an innovative strategic conference for this sector. The agenda of the European Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (EFLM) Strategic Conference in Mannheim (18-19 June) highlighted the challenges, and also outlined areas of discussion to…
For many years, Virtual Reality (VR) has been part of the gaming sector with eye goggles for players to interact with certain scenarios. However, more recently VR has shown it can deliver specific treatments in healthcare. It is already being applied, for example, to treat phobias and as a distraction therapy for pain.
“With Your Stories – lifetime healthcare support” is the future-driven approach combining the best of two worlds by using our insight and expertise in medical imaging systems and laboratory instrumentation to benefit patients through even better prevention, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up and thus help them in the pursuit of a healthy life.
Machine learning is playing an increasing role in computer-aided diagnosis, and Big Data is beginning to penetrate oncological imaging. However, some time may pass before it truly impacts on clinical practice, according to leading UK-based German researcher Professor Julia Schnabel, who spoke during the last ESMRMB annual meeting. Machine learning techniques are starting to reach levels of human…
Celebrating 40 years of PCI, cardiologists fret over their future with big data, machine learning and robots.
With MEDICA 2017 drawing ever nearer, Joachim Schäfer, Managing Director of Messe Düsseldorf GmbH, sets the stage with the following statement:
As a leading global provider of both diagnostic imaging and analytical instrumentation technologies, Shimadzu offers broad expertise in medical imaging and mass spectrometry detection platforms helping to deliver a measurable impact on healthcare and diagnosis. The company is the perfect partner for transformational technologies to accelerate diagnosis.
In the world of technology, the term Industry 4.0 is already well known. Univ-Prof. Dr. rer. nat. Bernhard Wolf has reveals a comparable development in medicine. Smart systems and personalisation have enormous potential, the Professor for Medical Electronics at the Technical University of Munich is convinced.
With 3-D printing revolutionising manufacturing, its healthcare potential is being explored for medical devices, prosthetics, dentistry and drug development. One area under the spotlight is the creation of artificial muscles using a 3-D printing system. Dr Fergal Coulter, who has played an important role in helping develop the technique, outlined the manufacturing process, which he invented for…
Wrist-watches, wrist and arm bands, tags, finger rings, clips, smart glasses, shoes, insoles, smart patches (as thermometers), sensors woven into fabrics for T-shirts and socks and, of course, implantable devices as well as ingested pills were displayed by 23 exhibitors in the Wearable Technologies Show at Medica this year. Report: Cornelia Wels-Maug
Personalised medicine is often equated with the development of drugs tailored to the genetic make-up of patients or cancers.
Medical technology still is among the fastest growing industries worldwide. However, the growth of the demand volume even in emerging markets is less based on volume expansion but more driven by targeted investments in modern systems and procedures.
The European medical technology industry association Eucomed notes with great concern recent press reports that the French firm Poly Implant Prothèse (PIP) may have violated the regulations by using unapproved industrial-grade silicone in some of its implantable products and by allegedly falsifying or withholding documents.
We may be able to live longer due to medical advances, but what of the ability to live independently in old age? According to DeStatis, the German Federal Statistical Office, by 2050 there will be a deficit of 260,000 caregivers – and Germany is not alone in this.
'There is no proof that some new procedures are better than the conventional ones or than clinical examination'
IVAM is an international association of companies and institutes that specialise in microtechnology, nanotechnology and advanced materials.
