Side by side to combat MRSA
With complementary portfolios, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) and B. Braun have been working together since mid- May to develop a complete one-stop system for the decontamination of MRSA patients
Upgrading ‘Big Iron’ for the digital century
Switzerland - It is a classic problem in any business. Everyone is working so hard to keep up with the rapid pace of orders that no one has time to get ahead. For the clinical laboratory the problem has grown greater each year, to the point that today’s new high-throughput instruments are still shackled to slow-throughput wires.
ELF helps to assess chronic liver disease
Devised by the European Liver Test group, the new, non-invasive Enhanced Liver Fibrosis (ELF) test on Siemens ADVIA Centaur Immunoassay Systems can identify, in under an hour, bloodbased biomarkers to detect the amount of fibrosis in the liver.
Molecular diagnoses will become routine
Molecular diagnostics is one of the most important technological advances in clinical diagnostics, seeing the €3.6 billion market grow 10% in constant currency (CC) in 2010 and predicted continual growth well above the diagnostic industry rates. The recipe for success in this field lies in three critical components: core technology, automation and menu. During our interview with Marc Meyer, the…
European Union approval for Plex-ID
Abbott Laboratories has obtained European Union approval to market its rapid, Plex-ID instrument, along with three assays for use on the system.
Sepsis – a Global Medical Emergency
The Global Sepsis Alliance (GSA) is urging healthcare providers, patients and policymakers worldwide to treat sepsis as a medical emergency. “Tens of millions of people die from sepsis each year, making it the likely leading cause of death worldwide. Sepsis kills regardless of age, ethnicity, location and access to care,” said Konrad Reinhart, M.D., Chairman of the GSA and director of the…
A new paradigm in early arthritis patients - proteomic biomarkers
Early arthritis is characterized by autoreactivity (reactivity against self-antigens) of T-B lymphocytes and by the synthesis of autoantibodies crucial for diagnosis (biomarkers). Detection of panels of autoantibodies increases the sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of arthritis. The variability in the performance of autoantibody assays may impact the predictive value. Confirmation of…
The Max Harry Weil Lecture at the ISICEM 2012
With his clinical and experimental research on the acute care of critically ill patients through round-the-clock monitoring of the vital functions Max Harry Weil revolutionised intensive care medicine and became known as its founding father. He died in 2011 in California, aged 84. Thus the first Max Harry Weil Lecture will be held in his honour at this ISICEM.
ISICEM 2012: So much to discuss…
When the ISICEM 2012 opens this March, Brussels will again experience a healthy influx of medical specialists intent on hearing the most recent, clinically relevant developments in research, therapy and management of the critically ill.
Remote blood gas data management
The 500-bed Warrington Hospital in the north-west of England has introduced rapid, accurate POCT to its wards. The hospital was one of the first in the UK to install Siemens RAPIDLab 1200 Blood Gas Analyzers and the RAPIDComm v3.0 Data Management System. More recently, it has installed Clinitek Status Connect systems to further enhance its operations.
Multichannel Verification System facilitates improved assay results
Artel is launching the new MVS Multichannel Verification System, an objective performance assessment and optimization tool for automated liquid handlers. The MVS offers accuracy and precision information for any liquid handling device with up to 384-channels, allowing for confidence in assay data.
Mobile skin cancer screening with iPhone
With handyscope, FotoFinder presents the first device for mobile skin cancer examination via the iPhone. This digital handheld dermatoscope allows doctors to capture and save microscopic pictures of moles using the iPhone, the handyscope device and the corresponding handyscope app.
Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust Selects Leica Microsystems
Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust has one of the largest immunohistochemistry / in situ hybridization (IHC / ISH) workloads in the United Kingdom, performing almost 120,000 IHC slides a year.
The ‘sepsis team’
‘We are all aware of the importance of early diagnosis and rapid appropriate treatment of patients with severe sepsis. Yet, many patients still do not receive satisfactory early management and the application of recent guidelines for sepsis management is still inadequate,’ writes Jean-Louis Vincent MD PhD, from the Intensive Care Department, Erasme Hospital, Université Libre de Bruxelles,…
The mobile app that answers patients’ medical test questions
Debuting at the AACC meeting was the first free mobile application to help consumers decipher their own medical tests. Created for use on an iPhone, iPad and Android smartphone, the Lab Tests Online app connects to a site promising to provide reliable, unbiased information that enables them to have more informed conversations with their doctors.
Siemens describes its new and advanced technology at AACC 2011
The health of the laboratory/ clinician relationship has always served as a good indicator of the overall quality of a given healthcare network. Historically, labs focused ‘heads down’ on delivering excellent test results, but today appear to be expanding their horizons to partner with clinicians for better patient care.
Cardiac Biomarkers: Pipeline or pipedream
A drop of blood can unlock secrets of the heart. By analysing the biological elements present in a blood, a physician can better understand the extent of damage or disease for patients with heart failure and more confidently prescribe a course of treatment.
When overweight kids become heart condition adults
A modern-day childhood totally differs from what was common just a few decades ago. It is mostly spent sitting -- at school desks, in front of TV screens or before computer monitors – all combined with the sweet temptations of the kid’s food industry. According to a WHO worldwide estimate, an estimated 10% of school-age children between five and 17 years old are overweight or obese. The…
Copper: The relentless killer on our side
Professor Bill Keevil, Director of the Environmental Healthcare Unit at University of Southampton’s School of Biological Sciences, was among the first microbiological researchers to experiment on copper’s efficiency against pathogenic and nonpathogenic strains of E. coli bacteria and demonstrate the inherent anti-microbial property of the metal.
Ultra-high throughput and advanced testing methods
During the IFCC and EuroMedLab congress in Berlin, Beckmann Coulter launched into Europe its AU 5800, which, the firm reports, improves processing time compared to current systems and therefore meets the demands of ever faster workflow in clinical laboratories.
Automation evolving from customers’ own needs
Adaptability and scalability were the buzz words at the Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics booth at this year’s IFCC-Worldlab and EuroMedLab congress. With the ongoing generation of their highperformance automation systems as an example, the company offers a multi-discipline architecture that enables a lab team to build an automation solution following their individual demands.
Roche - on show and within reach
Roche Diagnostics showcased its full spectrum of cobas laboratory solutions at EuroMedLab this year. Visitors were given live demonstrations and shown videos of leading products for both small and large laboratories – including workflow automation, analytics and customised IT.
Two sides of the coin
Too much unhealthy food, too little exercise – the risk factors for the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease and Type 2 diabetes are not only similar but also form a life-threatening alliance.
Germany to limit test strips prescriptions
Since the German Federal Ministry of Health did not oppose the Federal Joint Committee (G-BA) decision to eliminate reimbursement for urine and blood sugar test strips for Type 2 diabetics not dependent on insulin from the services provided by statutory medical insurers, from this October test strips will only be prescribed in exceptional cases.
Concerted efforts to combat prosthetic joint infections
Bacteria are highly flexible when it comes to choosing a vehicle to enter a human body. During orthopaedic surgery, they may well settle on a prosthetic joint and cause immediate or delayed infections.