EUROMEDLAB 2009
7-11 June Innsbruck, Austria
Gene Test Determines Risk of Heart Surgery Complications
Genetic differences can explain why some patients undergoing heart surgery later experience shock and kidney complications, according to a study by German and Australian researchers. The results indicate that performing a genetic test on patients before they have surgery can help guide treatment after they leave the operating room.
Second stage of German laboratory reform in force
Since 1 January 2008 laboratory groups have been invoicing their regional Associations of Statutory Health Insurance (Kassenärztliche Vereinigung - KV) directly — a measure meant to reduce lab costs, create more transparency and strengthen the role of on-site labs in doctors' surgeries. For physicians, this reform means that the decision that laboratory values will be requested has become more…
LabAutomation 2009
January's 5-day conference and exhibition that focused on emerging laboratory automation technologies conference and exhibition welcomed 4,237 international academics, commercial and government researchers, scientists and engineers to Palm Springs, California.
Laboratory automation in practice
The privately owned Laborärzte Sindelfingen in Sindelfingen, near Stuttgart, Germany, houses a specialist medical laboratory and a laboratory association*. In 2001 the management decided to simplify its work structure by installing an Olympus OLA2500 laboratory automation system (Olympus's first installation anywhere). Today the Sindelfingen has two OLAs. Here, Dr Robert Goes, who was…
Thermo Fisher Scientific Accelerates Biomarker Research at Pronota
Belgium - Pronota, in Ghent, is using Thermo Fisher Scientific's new HeavyPeptide FasTrack service to discover and validate disease biomarkers.
Article • Event
The 1st European Symposium on Quality Management and Accreditation in Laboratory Medicine
Organised jointly by the International Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (IFCC), the European Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (EFCC) and the French Society of Clinical Biology (SFBC), the two-day symposium served as a platform to address future strategies to promote accreditation for clinical chemists and all professions in laboratory medicine.
The PCA3 test
The number of prostate cancer cases is increasing rapidly.
Beckman Coulter to aquire lab-based Diagnostics business from Olympus Corporation
Beckman Coulter, Inc., a leading developer, manufacturer, and marketer of products that simplify, automate, and innovate complex biomedical tests, and Olympus Corporation, a Tokyo-headquartered precision technology leader, creating innovative opto-digital solutions in healthcare, life science and consumer electronics products, announced today that they have entered into a definitive agreement…
Nanotechnology to accelerate bone growth
In recent years, stem cells have become a hot topic of investigation with studies suggesting revolutionary medical benefits due to their ability to be converted into selected types of newly generated cells. Scientists have now come up with a way to help accelerate bone growth through the use of nanotubes and stem cells. This could lead to quicker and better recovery, for example after orthopedic…
New assay to identify acute HIV infections
A new HIV antigen-antibody combination assay, currently available in Europe, can be useful for high-volume screening to identify individuals with acute HIV infection, who would be missed by traditional HIV antibody tests, according to research presented by Johns Hopkins University, Abbott and others at the 16th Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI).
Genome Structural Variation Consortium used Roche technology
Roches NimbleGen´s CGH microarray platform was used to generate the highest-resolution map of human genome copy number variation. Recent advances in microarray technology have led to the discovery of extensive copy number variation in the human genome, including DNA copy number gains (duplications), losses (deletions), and multiallelic or complex rearrangements.
Siemens Novius Lab receives award
Renowned research firm KLAS has named Siemens Healthcare's (NOVIUS Lab as the recipient of its 2008 Best in KLAS award for laboratory information systems (LIS) for large hospitals with more than 200 beds. The prestigious annual award is given to a vendor or product that scores the highest in its industry segment and meets all other Best in KLAS requirements.
Diabetes: Low-glycemic food decreases risk for heart diseases
A study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) recently has found that those with type 2 diabetes who had a diet high in low-glycemic foods such as nuts, beans and lentils had greater improvement in glycemic control and risk factors for coronary heart disease than those on a diet with an emphasis on high-cereal fibre.
Changing the way we live
Marcel van Kasteel MBA, is VP of Philips and CEO of Handheld Immunoassays, a Philips Incubator venture in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, which recently announced that, by the end of this year, the first device to test for drug abuse will be marketed that will make on the spot testing simple and quick for use by the police.
St Mary's Hospital Centre
The overall quality of laboratory operations has traditionally been evaluated using a combination of three variables: analytical quality, timeliness (turnaround time) and operational efficiency.
Integrated healthcare solutions
Siemens Healthcare announced the signing of an agreement with Hospital Clinic in Barcelona, Spain, to integrate the use of laboratory diagnostics, imaging and information technology systems with the intent to improve management of patient care from early detection and diagnosis of diseases or conditions to patient treatment.
New insights of the role of microbial communities in the Human Gut
454 Life Sciences, a Roche company, announced that a team of researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have characterized the human gut microbiome by sequencing the microbial communities of adult twins and their mothers with the Genome Sequencer FLX System.
Roche launch the new BenchMark® ULTRA
With the acquisition of Ventara Medical Systems, Roche hopes to move several steps further forward in their goal for personalised medicine that improves diagnostics and ultimately, clinical outcomes.
Eppendorf cycler can now also be used in medical diagnostics
PCR plays a major part in medical diagnostics. From a few drops of blood, a tissue sample or a bacterial colony will be sufficient to confirm the presence of specific DNA. This approach relies, however, on a prior understanding of the mechanisms underlying the condition e.g. the causative organism in a viral disease. Standard primers are currently available for many pathogenic organisms which is…
Confocal microscopy ensures the quality of medical devices
Medical products have to fulfil exacting requirements. That is why surface properties are increasingly analysed with optical 3D measurement systems.
Fast and effective: The Dräger DrugTest 5000
Is there a case of drug abuse ore not? In case of an emergency physicians need a quick answer to decide about the further treatment. The Dräger DrugTest 5000 could deliver the information of up to six different drug classes within minutes.
Innovative surface leads to considerably higher cell yields
Advanced TC™ cell culture products have an innovative polymer modification which forms a special surface that optimises cultivation of fastidious cells and facilitates complex experimental approaches.
The US diabetes epidemic
There's little evidence that newer, more expensive drugs work any better than older, cheaper medications. Diabetes, which came 7th in the list of the USA's top mortality causes in 2006, has hit a new high.
Celiac test kits match multi-centre study demands
The results of the recent Multi-Centre Celiac Serology Study undertaken to define the optimal serological screening approach to Celiac Disease clearly showed that dual or combined isotype (IgA+IgG) transglutaminase screening can be advocated as a sensitive and specific alternative to endomysial antibody testing in the assessment of Celiac Disease.
