IT/Tech

From AI-based image analysis to virtual therapies: Find out how digitalisation and cutting-edge IT solutions advance the medical landscape.

News • Neuroprosthesis research

Restoring movement to paralysis patients with robotics and spinal stimulation

A new system that seamlessly integrates an implanted spinal cord neuroprosthesis with rehabilitation robotics delivers well-timed electrical pulses to enhance mobility and foster long-term recovery.

News • Responsiveness of machine learning models

Will an AI recognize patient deterioration in the ICU? Not quite yet

Machine learning models fail to detect key health deteriorations in the ICU: a new study reveals that 66% of critical injuries in hospitals would go unnoticed if the current AI models were put to use.

News • Research on soft wearable actuators

Artificial muscles for tremor suppression

To suppress tremors, such as those from Parkinson's disease, scientists equipped a biorobotic arm with artificial muscles, which compensate for the back-and-forth movement of the tremor.

Article • From chatbot to medical assistant

Generative AI: prompt solutions for healthcare?

Anyone who has exchanged a few lines of dialogue with a large language model (LLM), will probably agree that generative AI is an impressive new breed of technology. LLMs show great potential in addressing some of the most urgent challenges in healthcare. At the Medica tradefair, several expert sessions were dedicated to generative AI, its potential medical applications and current caveats.

News • Using pulsatile cranial expansion waveforms

New sensor registers intracranial pressure non-invasively

A novel sensor placed on a patient’s head registers nanometric expansions of the skull in each cardiac cycle in real time to measure intracranial pressure more accurately and non-invasively.

News • Medical evaluation via digital channels

Digitization calls for new skills in nurses

The work of a nurse is becoming increasingly digital. A new study shows that nurses need to expand their professional competencies beyond their traditional skills to adapt to these changes.

News • Uncovering human prejudice

How AI can help detect and reduce bias in emergency medicine

Generative AI can detect and quantify cognitive biases of human caregivers during medical emergency situations. This way, LLMs could help reduce the impact of bias based on gender, age, or ethnicity.

News • For newborns with congenital heart defects

Tiny pacemakers safely stabilize baby hearts

A pacemaker designed for babies could fill an unmet need for newborns with congenital heart defects and other heart conditions, finds a new study.

Video • Exergames for upper limb mobility recovery

Video games show promise in improving hand and wrist rehabilitation

Playing video games to recover hand and wrist mobility? A new system of exergames demonstrates the potential for rehabilitation while providing therapists with data to analyse patients’ progress.

News • Automated evaluation

Robot enhances side-effect monitoring after cardiac arrhythmia treatment

A newly-developed robot can detect medication side-effects in patients after heart arrhythmia treatment faster than a human doctor, while reducing the number of follow-up tests.

News • PROLIFERATE_AI evaluates RAPIDx AI

AI keeps an eye on health AI

It takes one to know one: Researchers have developed an AI-based evaluation tool to assess how well clinical AI tools perform in the hospital.

News • Multifunctional wearable

Smart patch combines health monitoring and drug delivery

Researchers developed a smart patch capable of real-time biometric signal monitoring and drug delivery. Potential applications include glucose management, pain relief, and chronic disease treatment.

News • Quantification of serum biomarkers

Early detection of lung cancer with low-cost biosensor

A sensor, similar to glucose monitoring devices, detects lung cancer biomarkers from a blood sample in just 40 minutes. The technology has potential to identify at-risk patients and tailor treatments.

News • Research project NEUROGATE

Holographic endoscope illuminates the brain

“A turning point in neuroscience,” say developers about a holographic endoscope that peers deep into the brain through an optical fiber – minimally invasive and with subcellular resolution.

News • From CT to prototype

Designing 3D printed surgical guides for cardiovascular surgeries

Patient-specific 3D printed surgical guides could provide a clear visual aid that helps cardiac surgeons locate key treatment areas on the heart, such as the optimal location to build the bypass vein.

Video • Miniaturisation milestone

Sub-millimetre robot for interventional diagnosis and treatment

Less than a millimetre: the world's smallest biomedical robot is designed for imaging, sampling, drug delivery, and laser ablation. The developers highlight potential new clinical applications.

News • Self-diagnosis survey

Health data: monitored by many, shared by few

A survey found that many Americans use a device to monitor their heart, but few share that data with their doctor. Cardiologists explain when findings should be discussed with a medical professional.

News • Patterned microstimulation

Artificial touch for brain-controlled bionic hand

Promising technology for patients with spinal cord injuries: A new study paves the way for complex touch sensation through brain stimulation, using an extracorporeal bionic limb.

News • Neural implant degradation

Building more durable implantable brain chips

New insights on the degradation of implantable chips in the body could lead to enhanced longevity of the chips and better treatments for patients with Parkinson's or clinical depression.

News • Checkpoint inhibitor immunotherapy efficacy

AI tool uses routine blood tests to predict cancer immunotherapy response

Researchers have developed an AI-based model to better predict whether cancer patients will benefit from immunotherapy — using only routine blood tests and clinical data.

News • Misleading medical analyses

AI “predicts” beer drinking based on knee X-rays – why this is not only wrong, but dangerous

Can an AI determine whether or not a person drinks beer by looking at their knee X-rays? It can't – but the claim shows why “shortcut learning” is such a dangerous mechanism in medical AI.

News • Tissue anchoring mechanism

Hooked: researchers design tapeworm-inspired medical device

US engineers turned to the world of parasites as inspiration to affix small-scale medical devices to the GI tract or other soft tissues for sensing, sample collection, and extended drug release.

News • LLM-based mental health detection

AI model could help prevent suicide in hospital patients

Large language models (LLM) show promise in detecting hospital patients at risk of committing suicide. This could help warn medical staff in time while maintaining the patients' privacy.

Article • Experts explore the future of CSP, CRT, ICD

Implantable cardiac devices: which techniques are ready for prime time?

Opposing views on new implantable cardiac devices were aired in a Great Debate session at the European Society of Cardiology’s annual 2024 congress in London. Experts discussed emerging techniques and technologies and debated whether they are actually ready for clinical application. At the core of the session was the issue of whether conduction system pacing (CSP) should replace cardiac…

Article • AI-assisted image analysis

More accuracy in brain tumour segmentation

Precise segmentation of anatomical structures greatly benefits cancer diagnosis. Using AI and deep learning methods, researchers are developing a high-precision 3D viewer software for medical image data.

News • R&D platform

Integrating AI into clinical workflows for medical imaging

To advance the transition of AI from research to clinical application, Nvidia announced that Siemens Healthineers has adopted MONAI, an open-source medical imaging framework.

News • Security and surveillance software

AI risk detection for healthcare security and patient safety

Detection of patient falls, unauthorized intrusions on hospital premises, and more: A new suite of AI tools is designed to enhance healthcare security and patient safety surveillance.

Article • Artificial intelligence meets internal medicine

Medical AI: Enter ‘dea ex machina’

In the world of theatre, the ‘deus ex machina’, the god from the machine, is a dramaturgical trick to resolve seemingly unsolvable conflicts. Can artificial intelligence (AI) also be such a universal problem solver for internal medicine? At the Annual Congress of the German Society of Internal Medicine (DGIM), Dr Isabella Wiest explored the potential – and limitations – of AI helpers.

News • Personalized EEG technology

3D-printed scalp tattoo to enhance neuro-diagnostics, BCI

Monitoring brainwaves and diagnosing neurological conditions could benefit from a novel 3D printing technology, which applies liquid ink onto a patient’s scalp to measure brain activity.

News • Deep learning advances

New AI model for cell segmentation and classification

US researchers have developed a comprehensive deep learning AI model designed to more accurately identify and classify cells in high-content tissue images.

Article • Generative AI

Large language models: enabler or eroder of cardiovascular care?

Large language models (LLMs) have potential in healthcare settings to help support both patients and clinicians. Cardiologist Dr Robert van der Boon believes they could have several applications, including patient communication and education, clinical decision support and administrative tasks. Delegates to ESC 2024 in London heard roles explored for LLMs in areas of clinical decision-making,…

Article • Product presentations at Medica 2024

Taiwan offers AI support for surgeons

Future-oriented large-scale investments on the one hand, political unrest on the other: The presentation of award-winning medical technology from Taiwan at Medica in Düsseldorf reflected a year full of changes and challenges. The prize-winning solutions for surgery, intensive care medicine, traumatology and endoscopy once again attracted a large professional audience.

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