News • COVID-19 and ARDS
Computer model of the lung enables protective ventilation
A computational lung model can be used to reduce damage caused by mechanical ventilation – and could increase survival rates for patients significantly.
Sponsored • Health IT solutions for the coronavirus pandemic
#StrongerTogether against COVID-19
To deal with the COVID-19 outbreak, the continuity of the radiology reporting activities is crucial. To guarantee this, care providers are expanding the remote reporting capabilities for their radiology teams. As part of their #StrongerTogether campaign, Agfa HealthCare demonstrates how remote and home reporting solutions can keep imaging workflows going across quarantine lines.
Article • Reducing healthcare costs, optimising patient care
The potential of remote patient monitoring
The remote patient monitoring technology and devices market has attracted significant investment in the past decade and is growing at an extraordinary rate. Expected to reach around 28 billion euros by the end of 2023, this market is very attractive to many big name companies that want to be ‘connected’ such as Qualcomm Life, Inc., OSI Systems, Inc., Philips Healthcare, Abbott Laboratories…
News • Coronavirus in EHR data
COVID-19 data saves lives in Spain
HM Hospitales, a leading Hospital Group in Madrid, decided to provide the international scientific community with totally anonymized health data regarding patients being treated for the SARS-CoV-2 virus in their facilities.
News • Coronavirus mutations
Tracking COVID-19 with genetic ‘barcode’
Drexel University researchers have reported a method to quickly identify and label mutated versions of the virus that causes COVID-19. Their preliminary analysis, using information from a global database of genetic information gleaned from coronavirus testing, suggests that there are at least six to 10 slightly different versions of the virus infecting people in America, some of which are either…
Article • Telemedicine
COVID-19 pandemic expedites a cultural change in healthcare
The pandemic has sparked a cultural change in healthcare and telemedicine use will increase much faster than planned in the near future, according to Vicent Moncho Mas, IT Director at Denia Marina Salud Hospital near Alicante, Spain.
News • Corona-induced coughing
New app listens to the 'sounds of COVID-19'
A new app, which will be used to collect data to develop machine learning algorithms that could automatically detect whether a person is suffering from COVID-19 based on the sound of their voice, their breathing and coughing, has been launched by researchers at the University of Cambridge. The COVID-19 Sounds App is now available as a web app for Chrome and Firefox browsers. Versions for Android…
Article • Orthopaedics
VR training to improve hip replacement surgery
More than 200,000 patients undergo hip replacement surgery in Germany each year. To avoid complications and extend the lifespan of the artificial joint, the implants must be fitted precisely in the acetabulum (hip socket). The procedure, particularly milling the acetabulum, is not only difficult but also the technique is difficult to teach and train.
Sponsored • COVID-19 app HeraeusCare
Heraeus Medical enables healthcare authorities to remotely monitor and prioritize potential COVID-19 patients
Heraeus Medical, makers of the market-leading PALACOS bone cement, has enhanced its online HeraeusCare orthopedic care coordination solution to a new digital health platform that connects healthcare authorities and providers with patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. “The coronavirus crisis is putting enormous strain on healthcare organizations, with worried patients filling emergency rooms…
News • Monitoring Covid-19 from the sky
A ‘pandemic drone’ to detect coronavirus infections
A ‘pandemic drone’ to remotely monitor and detect people with infectious respiratory conditions is being developed by the University of South Australia (UniSA) in partnership with a Canadian company. The drone will be fitted with a specialised sensor and computer vision system that can monitor temperature, heart and respiratory rates, as well as detect people sneezing and coughing in crowds,…
News • Experts express doubts
AI outperforming doctors: hype, exaggeration or fact?
Many studies claiming that artificial intelligence (AI) is as good as (or better than) human experts at interpreting medical images are of poor quality and are arguably exaggerated, posing a risk for the safety of ‘millions of patients’ warn researchers in The BMJ. Their findings raise concerns about the quality of evidence underpinning many of these studies, and highlight the need to improve…
Article • Raising data protection levels against cyberattacks
IT security: as routine as disinfection
Cyber attacks on hospitals occur every day. However, if IT security works well, nobody needs even notice. But if defence measures fail the impact can be enormous and the outcry among the general public large. The new branch-specific security standard (B3S) of the German Hospital Federation (DKG) shows how hospitals can improve their IT security. The Federal Office for Information Security (BSI)…
News • Downloadable helper
World’s first artificial pancreas app licensed for type 1 diabetes
The world’s first licensed, downloadable artificial pancreas app for people with type 1 diabetes now launched, based on over a decade of research by Professor Roman Hovorka at the University of Cambridge and Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. The CamAPS FX app works with an insulin pump and a glucose monitor to automatically deliver insulin to people living with the condition…
News • Transforming healthcare
AI: The impact on the workforce and organisations
EIT Health and McKinsey & Company have published a Europe-wide report “Transforming healthcare with AI: The impact on the workforce and organisations” exploring the impact of AI on healthcare practitioners, as well as the implications and obstacles for scaling AI in healthcare organisations and systems.
Article • Cryptography potential
Harnessing the benefits of blockchain to enhance care
Blockchain is a concept that could have significant benefits for healthcare – particularly in radiology – but several challenges remain. Although an effective conduit through which to share data and medical images, particularly across health systems, one drawback is speed, given the amount of data that can be involved. However, Professor Morgan McBee, paediatric radiologist and imaging…
News • At-home testing for COVID-19
Coronavirus testing? There's an app for that
A coronavirus app coupled with machine intelligence will soon enable an individual to get an at-home risk assessment based on how they feel and where they’ve been in about a minute, and direct those deemed at risk to the nearest definitive testing facility, investigators say. It will also help provide local and public health officials with real time information on emerging demographics of those…
News • Primary care cooperation
Rwanda's ambitious aims for digital health
A partnership between the Rwandan government and Babyl, the country's largest digital health service provider, creates the framework for Rwanda's ascent to be a world leader in digital health. The partnership will allow people over the age of 12 to have a consultation with their doctor or nurse through their phone within minutes. They will be able to receive prescriptions, lab requests and…
News • Automated helper
Robot uses AI and imaging to draw blood
Engineers at Rutgers University have created a tabletop device that combines a robot, artificial intelligence and near-infrared and ultrasound imaging to draw blood or insert catheters to deliver fluids and drugs. Their most recent research results, published in the journal Nature Machine Intelligence, suggest that autonomous systems like the image-guided robotic device could outperform people on…
News • Real exercises in a virtual environment
Bringing physiotherapy home with VR
Virtual reality could help physiotherapy patients complete their exercises at home successfully thanks to researchers at WMG, University of Warwick, who managed to combine VR technology with 3D motion capture. Currently prescribed physiotherapy often requires patients to complete regular exercises at home. Outside of the clinic, patients rarely receive any guidance other than a leaflet of…
News • Smart infection control
China uses AI to combat the novel coronavirus outbreak
Infrared thermometers are now used in most subway stations in China to prevent the spread of novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) pneumonia (MCP). Many stations have implemented an artificial intelligence (AI) based fever screening system developed by the Beijing-based company Megvii Technology Limited. The system supports non-contact remote temperature screening from a distance of 3 meters. "This…
News • Not-so-smart algorithms
Skin cancer diagnosis apps: mostly unreliable and poorly regulated
Smartphone apps used as ‘early warning systems’ for skin cancer are poorly regulated and frequently cannot be relied upon to produce accurate results, according to new analysis by experts at the University of Birmingham. Skin cancer detection apps are designed to ensure that the right people seek medical attention by providing a risk assessment of a new or changing mole. These apps use…
News • Smart diagnostic tool
CLEOS: The AI that listens to the patient
A new digital tool that tailors specific questions based on a patient's medical history could improve the safety of diagnosis and effectiveness of care, according to a new study at Danderyd Hospital and Karolinska Institutet. "The AI ensures the patient is asked all relevant questions for that particular individual," says doctoral student Helge Brandberg, one of the developers behind…
News • Whole-genome sequencing
First transmission of WGS data using quantum cryptography
Toshiba and the Tohoku University Medical Megabank Organisation (ToMMo) has succeeded in demonstrating the world’s first quantum cryptography transmission of whole-genome sequence data, with data volumes exceeding several hundred gigabytes. Since speeds for key distribution in quantum cryptographic communication technologies are currently about 10 Mbps at maximum, the speed at which data can be…
News • Use cases
New library shows what AI in healthcare can already do today
The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in clinical settings is already a reality, one that has brought benefits to patients, healthcare stakeholders and wider society. These developments have now been highlighted in a library of use cases on ‘Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare’, published by COCIR. The publication of this library of use cases fulfils COCIR’s commitment in its April 2019…
News • Endoscopy support
AI assisted polyp detector receives CE mark
Pentax Medical, a division of the Hoya Group, announced that it has cleared CE mark for Discovery, an innovative Artificial Intelligence (AI) assisted polyp detector designed to support endoscopists in finding potential polyps during a colorectal examination. Discovery is the outcome of a close cooperation between Pentax Medical research center located in Augsburg, Germany, and expert clinical…
