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'Partners in Focus online' portal will be available in January 2010

Access MediQuip, LLC, the nation's first and largest provider of outsourced implantable medical device management solutions to the healthcare industry, announced today that the latest release of its Partners in Focus online portal will be available to its 1800 provider customers in January.

23 Dec 2009

Embryo biopsy safe for singleton pregnancies

The largest and longest running study of children born after preimplantation genetic diagnosis and screening has shown that embryo biopsy does not adversely affect the health of babies born as the result of a subsequent singleton pregnancy.

23 Dec 2009

Study reveals patient characteristics can affect image quality of MDCT scans

A large multicenter international trial found that the image quality of multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) scans, used for the noninvasive detection of coronary artery disease, can be significantly affected by patient characteristics such as ethnicity, body mass index (BMI), and heart rate, according to a study in the January issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology.

23 Dec 2009

ASU scientists develop innovative prosthetic device

Arizona State University researchers have developed a prosthetic device that literally puts the spring back into an amputee's step. The ASU scientists have developed and refined SPARKy (for spring ankle with regenerative kinetics) into a smart, active and energy storing below-the-knee (transbitial) prosthesis.

23 Dec 2009

UPMC reports 10,000th patient treated using Elekta's Leksell Gamma Knife system

On the morning of December 17, 2009, UPMC physicians used Gamma Knife® surgery to treat the center's 10,000th patient, an 81-year-old male with a tumor deep in his brainstem, a site where traditional surgery would have been impossible. Gamma Knife surgery is performed using Elekta's Leksell Gamma Knife system, which directs up to 201 pencil-thin beams of therapeutic radiation precisely on brain tumors and other targets in the head.

From Elekta 23 Dec 2009

CT can be a preferred technique for diagnosing PE, according to study

Computed tomography (CT), a highly accurate, readily available medical imaging technique, is the overwhelmingly preferred technique of emergency physicians and radiologists for the diagnosis of pulmonary embolism (PE), according to a study in the January issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology.

23 Dec 2009

U.S. Congress approves $1.6 million for AdMeTech Foundation's research program

AdMeTech Foundation, a nonprofit organization, announced today that the U.S. Congress has approved $1.6 million for funding of its groundbreaking research program aimed at developing novel imaging technologies for early prostate cancer detection, which in turn is critical for saving lives and designing customized patient care, including the most effective and the least invasive approach.

23 Dec 2009

IBM Global Financing enters into agreements with four leading EHR providers

IBM today announced that its lending arm, IBM Global Financing, has entered into new financing agreements with four leading electronic healthcare records (EHR) providers, highlighting the growing need for private financing for health IT and the pressing challenges hospitals and medical practices face to adopt health IT solutions.

23 Dec 2009

Elizabethtown DI exceeds standard performance markers set by the RBMA

Opening day for any business is generally a nerve-wracking experience. Last-minute surprises are not uncommon. For Shonna Galloway, administrator for the brand-new Elizabethtown Diagnostic Imaging, however, the day before her employer's grand opening in October 2007 was one she'll never forget.

23 Dec 2009

Pancreas 3-D imaging useful in preoperative assessment of pancreatic carcinoma patients

In the field of hepatic imaging in the context of living liver donors and before complex partial liver resections, three-dimensional imaging of the liver, hepatic vessels and bile ducts has managed to become established in some centers. In this case, in addition to visualization, the volumetry of various liver sections is of interest. Moreover, the three-dimensional reconstruction can be used preoperatively to consider various resection options and to evaluate their technical feasibility with regard to vascular and bile duct anatomy and to the expected liver volume after surgery.

23 Dec 2009

Stochastic resonance can improve breast cancer detection

Members of a Syracuse University research team have shown that an obscure phenomenon called stochastic resonance (SR) can improve the clarity of signals in systems such as radar, sonar and even radiography, used in medical clinics to detect signs of breast cancer. It does this by adding carefully selected noise to the system.

23 Dec 2009

UMHC activates Philips VISICU eICU Program to care for critically ill patients

University of Mississippi Health Care (UMHC) announced today its activation of the Philips VISICU eICU® Program to enhance care of the critically ill in rural communities of Mississippi. As the first health system in the region to implement the eICU Program, UMHC will serve as the lead resource for critical care across Mississippi.

23 Dec 2009

Magnetic stimulation therapy can treat depression

Magnetic stimulation therapy can beat depression when medication and therapy haven't worked, according to the December issue of Mayo Clinic Health Letter.

23 Dec 2009

InstaMed Platform and Network product achieves CORE Phase II rules certification

InstaMed, the industry leading healthcare payments network and platform, announced today that it has achieved CAQH® Committee on Operating Rules for Information Exchange (CORE®) Phase II rules certification for its InstaMed Platform and Network product.

23 Dec 2009

Guardian Technologies International meets and presents SM TBDx to Indian healthcare officials

Tuberculosis (TB) continues to be a serious global pandemic health threat with more than 9 million new cases diagnosed annually. TB is a leading cause of mortality in India, killing nearly 1,000 people each day.

23 Dec 2009

Contact lens can produce near-normal vision in infants and children

Infants as young as one-month-old are prescribed contact lenses at pediatric eye surgery centers so their visual system will develop correctly. Infants may be fitted for contacts if they have had cataract surgery, need extremely high-strength prescription glasses, or have very different prescriptions for the two eyes.

22 Dec 2009

Use of digital checklist for patients during pandemic reduces fatigue factor, shows report

The use of a digital checklist for patients being administered emergency drugs during a pandemic or following a biological terrorist attack reduces the fatigue factor, according to a report in the International Journal of Healthcare Technology and Management, and could save lives.

22 Dec 2009

Tel Aviv University's new Genome Analyzer fuels research dreams and tomorrow's cures

To identify the hemophilia mutation that affected Queen Victoria and her European relatives, scientific detectives used a cutting-edge "deep sequencing tool." Able to trace rare genetic disease mutations, the tool can turn a single laboratory into a fertile genetic research center.

22 Dec 2009

Monitoring blood glucose levels with contact lenses may soon be a reality for diabetes patients

Diabetics may soon be able to wear contact lenses that continuously alert them to variations in their glucose levels by changing colours - replacing the need to routinely draw blood throughout the day.

22 Dec 2009

Smith & Nephew acquires property, manufacturing and operation assets of Nucryst Pharmaceuticals

The Advanced Wound Management division of Smith & Nephew plc (LSE: SN; NYSE: SNN), announced today that its affiliates have completed the acquisition of substantially all of the assets of Nucryst Pharmaceuticals Corp. ("Nucryst").

22 Dec 2009