Scientists develop an intelligent knife
Scientists at Imperial College in London, United Kingdom, have developed an ‘intelligent knife’ that instantly informs surgeons whether the tissue they are operating on is cancerous.
Ultrasound 60 years later
Through the miracle of modern-day ultrasound, we are able to see – in three dimensions and in real time – the functioning of arteries, veins and the many sophisticated structures of the heart. While most think of ultrasound technology as it relates to grinning parents getting a first glance of their baby in the womb, cardiovascular care is being revolutionised by advances in ultrasound…
On its first test path
The prototype of the open X-ray system ORBIT generates detailed 3-D images
Key trends from CMEF in Xiamen
Crowds of hospital delegates flocking in to Xiamen on the first day of CMEF had already suggested that the event will be welcoming more than the roughly 60,000 delegates expected to participate
The complex science behind microbubbles
At Bracco Suisse SA in Geneva all efforts are dedicated to contrast media for ultrasound scans. During their visit to the firm’s research centre and manufacturing site, Daniela Zimmermann and Ralf Mateblowski met with François Tranquart MD PhD, general manager of the Bracco Suisse research centre, to hear why SonoVue is now Europe’s most popular ultrasound contrast agent, with research…
The ESPOIR Study
Professor Axel Haverich and team at the Clinic for Cardiothoracic, Transplant and Vascular Surgery in Hanover Medical School (MHH) have been carrying out research into decellularised heart valves for over 15 years. They trialled a procedure – initially in the laboratory and in animal experiments – which does not cause tissue rejection, is hoped to last a lifetime and, in the case of children,…
Now is the time to pool knowledge
Cooperation between the individual diagnostic fields of radiology, pathology and laboratory medicine has increased in daily clinical routine over the last few years. To a large extent, the three disciplines are faced with the same requirements and problems.
Vendors and providers have worked to make examinations safer
Nuclear medicine (NM) is the second largest source of medical radiation exposure after CT. However, patients who had a NM examination a decade ago most likely received a higher radiation dose than a patient in 2013.
Imaging key factor in personalised medicine
Radiologists, EU policy makers and medical industry in drive to strengthen collaboration on personalised medicine
The potential of ultrasound looks inexhaustible
Experts from DEGUM, the German Society for Ultrasound in Medicine, are convinced that the use of ultrasound in preclinical and clinical emergency medicine can be further optimised, according to interim study results that indicate, in cases of unclear symptoms, the diagnosis and therefore decision for appropriate A&E treatment can be accelerated by using ultrasound.
Personal shear rate therapy
In 1839 Richard Thoma was the first to observe that arteries respond to flow: he identified a fundamental relationship between blood flow and arterial calibre.
Extra-aortic counter pulsation
The C-Pulse, manufactured by Australian-American company Sunshine Heart, Inc. is neither a pulsatile artificial heart nor one of the well-known non-pulsatile left heart support systems
Intra-aortic balloon pump pros & cons
Since cardiac surgeon Adrian Kantrowitz, of the Maimonides Medical Centre, Brooklyn, first introduced intra-aortic balloon pulsation (IABP) into clinical practice in 1967 (Surg Clin North Am. 1969 Jun; 49 (3) :505 -11), the technique has been considered the method of choice for short-term mechanical cardiac support following a heart attack.
The time machine
While the benefits of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) as a temporary respiratory support for adult patients are still debated, it is undisputed that for many infants ECMO is the only chance to survive, because it provides them with time to strengthen their lungs
Cardiology drives innovation
‘Cardiology is one of the most innovative medical disciplines. Many modern technologies, such as catheterisations or imaging procedures, were triggered by cardiology,’ declared Professor Dr Gerald Maurer MD.
Renal denervation
A new procedure may help people with persistent hypertension. By burning or ablating the nerves in the renal arteries, blood pressure levels can be reduced significantly.
Cardiac disease death rates fall in the EU
Death rates from cardiac disease have more than halved in many EU countries since the early 1980s, according to new research published in the European Heart Journal.
Turbulences in ultrasound
Ultrasound expands its role in cardiac imaging with disruptive applications. Fasten your seat belt. Cardiac diagnostics is entering a zone of turbulence. Manufacturers of leading systems continue to mine data from the sonic signal that opens new fields for research. John Brosky reports
Article • Healing hearts 2
Stem cell cocktails
Nothing new has been invented in heart failure in the last 15 years, according to Christian Homsy, CEO of Belgian-based Cardio3 Biosciences. This explains the excitement surrounding an emerging treatment among cardiologists, patients and investors.
Molecular US therapy, computer diagnosis and customized medication
Which technological advancements can we expect to see in the field of medical technology? How well can diagnosis and therapy be customized for each patient?
Raising awareness of in vitro diagnosis values
Labs need to optimise their costs as well as accommodate increasing volumes – and new tests are continuously demanded.
Searching Brain Pathways for Clues on Autism
Timothy Roberts, PhD, works in the middle of an epidemic. In the 20 years the researcher has studied autism, the diagnosis rate among children in the United States has risen from one in 1,000 to one in 88. No one is sure of the cause, how to prevent it, or how to treat it.
Schizophrenia gene discovered
Working independently from different perspectives, geneticists from Finland and biochemists from Würzburg have researched the molecular mechanisms of schizophrenia and cognitive impairment.
Minimally invasive stents show some advantages over bypass
Compared to open bypass, stenting keeps circulation flowing longer in some patients, small study concludes.
Multiple sclerosis
Multiple sclerosis (MS) – the inflammatory condition in the central nervous system (CNS) – leads to scarring, with several scars forming lesions, also called plaques. Although long assumed that only white matter is involved, this is increasingly questioned.