Success in preserving organs for transplant
A Birmingham hospital is pioneering a new procedure which aims to maintain and improve the quality of organs for transplantation in recipients on the waiting list.
Lung
Reducing breath size and pressure from ICU ventilator increases long-term survival in people with acute lung injury
Carefully adjusting mechanical ventilator settings in the intensive care unit to pump smaller breaths into very sick lungs can reduce the chances of dying by as much as 8 percent, according to a study by critical care experts at Johns Hopkins. Study participants were evaluated for two years after their acute lung injury.
Ultrasound and the lung
Lung ultrasound is a technique with widespread uses and advantages in a range of areas from critical care through to less urgent medical areas. Most of all, it is of particular help in the rapid diagnosis of acute respiratory failure. During a session at WFUMB, its benefits and the latest techniques will be outlined by medical intensivist Dr Daniel Lichtenstein -- Lung Ultrasound in Acute…
CT, PET-CT, MRT and transthoracic ultrasound in lung cancer staging
Dr Helmut Prosch, at the University Clinic for Radio-Diagnostics, Vienna, Austria, is examining the role of imaging in lung cancer diagnosis and staging. The key message of his presentation in the session EUS and EBUS vs. CT, MR and PET-CT in the staging of lung cancer is that the modalities do not compete with one another – as the title suggests – but are perfectly complimentary in the…
Watching the lungs work
Held near Kobe, Japan, the Joint Meeting of the International Workshop and the Japanese Society of Pulmonary Functional Imaging drew in more than 250 international researchers and clinicians who work at the forefront of pulmonary functional imaging
Easy breathe - new tools for prolonged lung support
Often a life-saving intervention, mechanical ventilation also has some serious drawbacks: the need for sedation, the risk of ventilator associated pneumonia, intubation or tracheostomy related complications. In 1972, Donald Hill from Pacific Medical Centre, Los Angeles, reported the first successful long-term mechanical lung assist device with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).
Telemedicine brings new ways to monitor lung diseases
Aipermon GmbH & Co. KG reports that cooperations with medical device manufacturers Vitalograph and PARI Pharma have opened up new approaches to telemonitor lung patients.
MRI of the lung ready for broad clinical application
The lungs had to be regarded as the black hole for MRI for a long time. However, since the introduction of substantial improvements in hardware and scanner technology, there is certainly light at the end of the tunnel. MRI offers two main advantages for the diagnostic pathways for pulmonary diseases applied today.
Managing lung malignancies with SonoSite's M-Turbo system
The respiratory unit at Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) is using SonoSite's M-Turbo system for management of pleural effusions, particularly in patients with lung tumours.
Non-invasive and radiation-free lung imaging system
GE Healthcare in partnership with Deep Breeze Ltd, the leader in vibration response imaging (VRI™) technology, announced that FDA granted marketing clearance for the VRIxv™, a non-invasive, radiation-free lung imaging system.
Broccoli against lung disease?
Experts starts to identify nutrition's components that might support the fight against diseases. Recently researchers from John Hopkins Medical School found that a decrease in lung concentrations of NFR2-dependent antioxidants, key components of the lung's defense system, is linked to the severity of chronic obstructive pulmany disease (COPD) in smokers.
Hyperpolarised Helium MRI of the lungs
Only few imaging modalities lend themselves to imaging of the lungs. Conventional chest radiography is the most commonly used tool in the investigation of pulmonary pathology but yields the perhaps most difficult, plain radiographs to interpret.
First Czech heart/lung transplant
The Czech Republic's first cardiac transplant took place in 1984; now about 40 take place annually. The country's first lung transplants began ten years ago; to date around a hundred have been performed by Professor Pavel Pafko and colleagues at the Motol Faculty Hospital, in Prague.
Diagnostic accuracy of PET and CT in early stage lung cancer
A multi-institutional study recently compared whether positron emission tomography (PET) or computed tomography (CT) performs more efficient in the characterization of solitary lung nodules (SPNs). Previously performed studies were either limited by small sample sizes or carried out more than a decade ago with outdated technology and methods.
1st portable heart-lung machine
Lifebridge is the first portable heart-lung machine which promises a great success for the clinlical use.
A radiation-free system for lung function monitoring
Although modern respirators present ever increasing features to enhance and simplify ventilation therapy, methods to quantify the efficacy of ventilator changes are limited.
Tissue-saving lung resection in malignant diseases
During operative therapy for bronchial carcinoma the surgeon is always faced with two seemingly diametrical demands: Maximum radicalness whilst preserving as much healthy lung tissue as possible.
Stem Cell therapy repairs lungs in mice
At the Annual Congress of the European Respiratory Society (ERS), which took place in Stockholm, September 15-19, 2007, researchers from the Imperial College London, UK, presented their study about the successful implantation of lung cells grown from embryonic stem cells into the lungs of mice. In future, this method could be used for the treatment of human lung diseases.
Ready for action: The 17.5 kg heart-lung machine
The Lifebridge B2T (bridge-to-transport) is the first, fully portable emergency life support system for patients suffering cardiogenic shock, or those showing signs of imminent cardiogenic shock.
Study shows relation between LKB1 gene and lung cancer
Lung cancer has a high mortality: Despite prevention programms each year 1.3 million people die due to malignant mutation of lung cells. It's the most common cause of cancer-related death in men, second most common in women.
Non-invasive lung diagnosis
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) as a non-invasive diagnostic method has been evolving into an attractive alternative to methods associated with radiation exposure.
World's smallest lung function testing system meets latest ATS/ ERS spirometry standards
SpiroStar is the smallest lung function testing system in the world, reports its Finnish manufacturer Medikro Oy. Weighing just 22 grams, this also became one of the first to satisfy the new and changed requirements for the calculation of lung function testing, meeting the latest ATS/ERS spirometry standards.
syngo Lung CAD detects more lung nodules
syngo Lung CAD, the second generation of nodule detection software from Siemens received FDA approval letter.
Visualising the breathing lung
After previous meetings in the USA (2002) and Japan (2004), this October the 3rd International Workshop of Pulmonary Functional Imaging (IWPFI) took place in the German Cancer Research Centre, based in Heidelberg University, Germany. " 'The clinicians' need for earlier and more detailed diagnosis in pulmonary disease demands a joint interdisciplinary effort to push the limits in pulmonary…
The extracorporeal lung
German medical technology firm Novalung GmbH (est. 2002) produces extracorporeal artificial lungs.
