
Blood pressure monitors
Specialising in BP monitors, Omron Healthcare BV of Hoofddorp, the Netherlands, is extending portfolio with two new designs for medical professionals.

Specialising in BP monitors, Omron Healthcare BV of Hoofddorp, the Netherlands, is extending portfolio with two new designs for medical professionals.

Ageing populations, struggling healthcare systems, medical staff shortages, rising costs – all are well recognised. Thus telemedicine, dubbed the ‘gold rush of the 21st century’ earlier in the year by Jonathan D Linkous, CEO of the American Telemedicine Association (ATA), is gaining momentum.

The highly-anticipated and positive results from the IN-TIME study of home monitoring technology were recently presented in a hotline session at this year’s European Society of Cardiology (ESC) congress by coordinating investigator Professor Gerhard Hindricks MD, from the Heart Centre, University of Leipzig, Germany.

Virtual observation of patients taking prescribed TB medication could prove an effective technique to ensure they effectively complete their treatment course, according to research presented at the European Respiratory Society (ERS) Annual Congress held in Barcelona.

A UK study has highlighted the issue of patients waking up from a general anaesthetic while undergoing surgery. The research, which questioned more than 7,100 consultant anaesthetists, revealed that there was about one episode of accidental awareness in every 15,000 general anaesthetics cases in the three million UK operations in 2011.

Disorientation, anxiety and hallucinations are symptoms of delirium, which may also occur after major surgery. Older people are particularly affected by postoperative delirium. Delirium after surgery occurs in up to 70% of cases, Anja Behringer reports

Patients with cardiac implantable electric devices (CIED) need ongoing and lifelong follow-ups. Due to the growing number of CIEDs, the demand for follow-up visits is increasing rapidly and already pushing clinics to maximum capacities.

Cliff, a two-year-old beagle, has recently demonstrated his talent for detecting Clostridium difficile according to doctors at the Vrije University Medical Centre (VUMC) in Amsterdam.

Founded in 1991 in Shenzhen, China, Mindray is now known internationally for its products that cover patient monitoring and life support, in-vitro diagnostics, medical imaging and veterinary. During Daniela Zimmermann’s interview with David Yin, General Manager of Mindray Europe, he described the firm’s clear strategy for Europe and beyond

GE Healthcare yesterday announced the availability of the Giraffe® Stand-Alone Infant Resuscitation (STAR) System, which integrates critical capabilities to enhance effective resuscitation of newborns.
Conceptualized specifically for high-acuity patient monitoring and integrated with the world’s leading technologies, Edan Instruments’ latest elite V8 modular patient monitor offers real-time, organized view of accurate patient information, intelligent data analysis, management, network connectivity and simplified operation to the ICU, CCU, NICU, OR and PACU.

For a surgeon to perform at their peak, they need the highest quality equipment. For this reason, Sony developed the PVM-2551MD 24.5” monitor.

Hospital acquired infections (HAIs) are among the most common complications during a hospital and care home stay in the West (although they also occur in developing countries, with even an assumed higher incidence), causing enormous strain for those affected as well as high follow-on costs for healthcare systems.

Ensuring the safety of hospitalised patients is vital – and brought under a particularly strong focus in anaesthesiology. Launched in 2010, the Helsinki Declaration provided a further boost. Report: Holger Zorn

Volume-targeted ventilated premature babies have a higher survival rate and suffer less ventilation-related lung damage – this is the result of a survey amongst international neonatologists.

If the hopes of inventors are to be believed, in around 20 years’ time there will be ‘real artificial lungs -- for now the endpoint of a history that began 84 years ago with the invention of the iron lung. Until then, non-invasive and invasive mechanical respiration will continue to dominate the hospital, complemented by extracorporeal procedures for blood oxygenation and decarbonisation,…

The world’s first gene cancer therapy study of an innovative oral vaccine is underway at the Surgical Clinic of Heidelberg University Hospital.

Surgical simulations can save lives, Anja Behringer reports Medical errors occur more frequently than traffic accidents and clearly better systems are needed to improve patient safety. Thus the importance of medical training using human simulation models is increasingly emphasised in Germany.

This week, university hospital Klinikum rechts der Isar in Munich, Germany, is the first hospital in the world to operating Brainlab’s Curve Image Guided Surgery system. Curve is Brainlab’s latest generation of image-guided surgery systems. The new technology provides surgeons with better guidance and control during surgery enabling faster, more precise and safer interventions.

Schiller reports that its new range of touch screen ECG systems combines precision performance and attractive ergonomics. With a touch to the large, high-resolution colour display, 12-lead ECGs and pulmonary function tests can be recorded, selected and printed in seconds.

A solution for a large but previously unsolved problem has been solved by LMT Lammers Medical Technology GmbH, which specialises in the interface of neonatology and radiology.

‘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,…

An original computer application that enables access to electronic patient records (EPRs) instantly via doctors’ smartphones has been designed by the IT team at the Holy Name Medical Centre in Teaneck, New Jersey, USA. The app also offers direct phone links to a patient’s nurse and emergency contact person via iPhone, Android, Blackberry and other mobile devices. Report: Mark Nicholls

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.