Virtual Reality (VR) technology is aiding trainee surgeons to practise complex procedures in a simulated setting, rather than learning skills on real patients. VR is also helping to demystify neurosurgery in that it enables medical students and patients to ‘enter’ and experience a neurosurgical operating theatre. Alex Alamri, a trainee neurosurgeon at Barts Health NHS Trust in London, UK,…
The selection of a first-line chemotherapy drug to treat many types of cancer is often a clear-cut decision governed by standard-of-care protocols, but what drug should be used next if the first one fails? That’s where Georgia Institute of Technology researchers believe their new open source decision support tool could come in. Using machine learning to analyze RNA expression tied to…
Taiwan’s long-term investment in research and development has transformed the country from the low-cost production center of yesterday into the go-to source for original technologies for the global community of healthcare professionals and medical device manufacturers. Still, Taiwan develops and manufactures high-quality medical devices at costs that are far lower than those in Europe and the…
While the question is still debated as to whether MRI is the better CT, along comes a potential game changer – a new data based 3-D reconstruction method of heart anatomy and function that aims to replace diagnostic coronary angiography. In the near future not only adult patients with coronary heart disease could benefit from this new technique but also children with complex congenital heart…
Physicians have been performing surgery with the assistance of x-ray technology for almost half a century. While this technology has been progressing steadily, its limitations continue to be a major challenge. Thus, many professionals agree: it’s time for our method to be changed. At MEDICA 2017, Taiwan Main Orthopaedics Biotechnology introduced the worldwide first smart surgical glasses. While…
A new augmented reality system to guide procedures in interventional oncology is currently taking its first steps. A three-step experiment proves this system to be precise and reliable enough to facilitate image guidance critical to the success of interventional oncology procedures. Using a back-face camera and a tablet PC to visualise the patient, the system projects 3D images of body structures…
The need to ensure that laboratory medicine can meet the future challenges of a rapidly changing healthcare environment sits at the core of an innovative strategic conference for this sector. The agenda of the European Federation of Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (EFLM) Strategic Conference in Mannheim (18-19 June) highlighted the challenges, and also outlined areas of discussion to…
For many years, Virtual Reality (VR) has been part of the gaming sector with eye goggles for players to interact with certain scenarios. However, more recently VR has shown it can deliver specific treatments in healthcare. It is already being applied, for example, to treat phobias and as a distraction therapy for pain. Work also progresses on how it can enable better outcomes for invasive…
Older adults with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), often a precursor to Alzheimer’s, showed significant improvement with certain complex thinking and memory skills after exergaming, according to a new study. The results could encourage seniors, caregivers and health care providers to pursue or prescribe exergames (video games that also require physical exercise) in hopes of slowing the…
Villa Sistemi Medicali, characterized by its strong propensity for innovation, has decided to invest in the use of the latest augmented reality technologies first in its industry, to promote its products in an unprecedented and effective way. In collaboration with Realmore (business unit of Equent Media Group) and MCommunication, Villa Sistemi Medicali has developed "RAD/AR", an…
Bracco Imaging S.p.A., a global leader in diagnostic imaging, announced a strategic partnership with R.A.W. S.r.l. - an Italian company focused on Augmented Reality Guidance technology in Interventional Oncology procedures - to expand its portfolio of solutions for Interventional Oncology. One of the key challenges clinicians have to face during interventional procedures is the precise…
Researchers at Imperial College London (ICL) have shown how the Microsoft HoloLens headset can be used during reconstructive lower limb surgery. Surgeons at London’s St Mary’s Hospital are using the device, a self-contained computer headset that immerses the wearer in ‘mixed reality’, enabling them to interact with holograms visible through the visor. In effect, the limb’s interior is…
With support from a research grant from the Academy of Architecture for Health Foundation, a West Virginia University researcher is leading a study that will help address the functional complexity of large hospitals. Shan Jiang, assistant professor of landscape architecture in the School of Design and Community Development, and her research team will utilize immersive virtual reality technologies…
A patient walks slowly into the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). He sits on a hospital bed, hears unfamiliar beeps and other sounds. Doctors and nurses arrive to talk about all the surrounding machines and how things work in an ICU. Everything is calm and without stress for the patient as he listens to them. Then the virtual reality (VR) glasses he is wearing are removed, and he returns to reality. The…
Medical Augmented Reality (AR) assistance systems overlay information onto a surgeon’s field of view. This technology is complex and expensive. Therefore, the procedure must offer a big advantage compared to conventional treatment and diagnostic methods to qualify for standard use. The objective is a system that shows a surgeon a 3-D image of inside the body plus instruments used during surgery…
Oculus Rift, a gaming headset, can help teach nurses how to communicate better, researchers at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology have found.