GE’s Vivid T8 Rugged Ultrasound with Advanced Cardiovascular Capabilities (VIDEO)
GE Healthcare won FDA approval for its budget-friendly Vivid T8 mobile echo system with stress echo and transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) capabilities. It’s designed to take advantage of GE’s LOGIQ technology that allows to easily share the system with different customization options among a variety of clinicians in a facility.
GE touts that the 129 pound (58 kg) T8 was built particularly for high reliability, test models having been put through more than 20 hours of intense vibration, shocks, and changes in environmental temperature.
A more complete list of the T8′s features according to the annou...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - June 30, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiology Critical Care Medicine Ob/Gyn Radiology Source Type: news
Sphere Medical’s Real-Time In-Line Blood Analyzer Gets a Go in Europe
It’s often important to monitor the various levels of analytes in a hospitalized patient’s blood. This normally requires blood draws that are then placed in a nearby device or are sent to the hospital’s lab for analysis, a process that takes considerable time and delivers slow results. Sphere Medical out of Cambridge, England just received European CE Mark approval for its Proxima arterial blood analyzer, a device that provides real-time results of blood gas, hematocrit, and electrolyte measurements as often as necessary.
The Proxima is connected to the arterial line that the patient would normally have a...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - June 9, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiology Critical Care Medicine Pediatrics Source Type: news
Thinklabs One, a New Digital Stethoscope with Advanced Audio Features
Thinklabs Medical (Centennial, CO), a company that’s been focusing on producing high-end electronic stethoscopes, has unveiled its latest flagship model, the Thinklabs One. The device itself fits entirely into the chestpiece and works with any headphones of your choice. It can amplify sounds by more than 100x and provides a variety of audio filtering options to better hear heart murmurs, diastolic rumbles, lungs sounds, etc, etc.
The device can connect to tablets and smartphones to visually display the waveform of the audio using a matching app, which can also record and let you zoom in on specific spots in the reco...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - June 3, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiology Critical Care Emergency Medicine Pediatrics Source Type: news
NovaCath Peripheral IV Catheterization System Cleared in Europe (VIDEO)
A year and a half past FDA approval, European authorities have given Tangent Medical‘s (Ann Arbor, MI) NovaCath Integrated IV Catheter System the CE Mark of approval. The device was designed to improve stability of peripheral IV catheterizations and to reduce the chances of clinical staff being pricked.
Here’s a video showing off the NovaCath:
Flashbacks: Tangent Medical’s Novacath Peripheral IV Catheter System Cleared in U.S…; Tangent Medical’s NovaCath Integrated IV Catheter Coming to U.S. Market…; Tangent Shows Off NovaCath Secure IV Catheter…
Press release: Tangent Medical Rece...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - June 2, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Emergency Medicine Pediatrics Surgery Source Type: news
Gauss Surgical Blood Loss Measurement App Approved by FDA for Use in ORs
EBL, or estimated blood loss, is “estimated” for a reason. It’s a crude guess in many surgical cases. Blood gets soaked in laps, sponges, and drapes. But no one argues with how important it is to know how much blood was lost in order to prepare a transfusion. This has been difficult and doctors have relied on weighted bloody sponges, measuring the ratio of hemoglobin to hematocrit (Hb/Hct), CVP, etc, etc. All these methods have their flaws and so don’t result in accurate blood loss numbers. Gauss Surgical (Los Altos, CA) just received FDA approval for its Triton Fluid Management System, an iPad ap...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - May 21, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiac Surgery ENT Neurological Surgery Ob/Gyn Thoracic Surgery Urology Vascular Surgery Source Type: news
LifeBot Releases World’s Lightest Advanced Cardiac Monitor/Defibrillator/Pacer
LifeBot (Phoenix, AZ) just announced the release of the world’s lightest external advanced life support defibrillator, the LifeBot ALS Defibrillator. The unit weighs only 2.8 pounds (1.27) kg and is 4.5 x 8.35 x 2.5 inches (11.43 x 21 x 6.35 cm) in size. It features single lead monitoring, ability to pace the heart, and manual or semi-automatic defibrillation.
The company touts the ease of use of the system, allowing first responders to quickly begin life-saving therapy. Additionally, pacing and cardioversion can be performed using the same pair of electrode pads. The device is initially being made available internat...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - May 19, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiology Critical Care Emergency Medicine Military Medicine Source Type: news
Electronic μ-Opioid Sensor to Help in Understanding How Anesthesia Works
While anesthesiologists are confidently knocking people out and waking them up on a daily basis, giving them analgesics and related meds, a lot of the mechanisms of the drugs they use are poorly understood. To help in uncovering how opioids operate, researchers at University of Pennsylvania developed a completely electronic μ-opioid sensor that can be used as a laboratory instrument.
The investigators developed an artificial μ-opioid receptor protein that was modified to be soluble in water in order to make it practical for lab work. It was then bound to a graphene substrate that acted as a field-effect transistor c...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - May 8, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology in the news... Source Type: news
Bier Nerve Blocks Using Nanoparticles and Magnets?
Artist’s conception of nanoparticles.
Nanoparticles that target specific spots in the body have usually been developed for oncologists to attack tumors. A team of researchers at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine wanted to see whether nanoparticles ferrying local anesthetics could be effective in perioperative anesthesia and analgesia. Specifically, they evaluated whether a nanoparticle-delivered peripheral nerve block exhibits any benefits over traditional blocks.
The scientists created nanoparticles that contained magnetite, a ferrous mineral, coupled to ropivacaine, a commonly used local anesthetic. In a ...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - April 21, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Pain Source Type: news
Analogic Sonic Window Handheld Ultrasound for Peripheral IV Placement
Analogic received FDA clearance and has just unveiled its new Sonic Window handheld ultrasound system to help in placing peripheral IVs. Devices that use infrared cameras and projectors that help visualize the location of veins, such as VeinViewer, have been around for a few years now, but they don’t help with knowing the depth, nor much about the other anatomy in the vicinity.
The Sonic Window resembles a remote control crossed with an iPod, but is actually an ultrasound transducer, computer, battery, and display in one system. It’s operated with one hand and provides a real-time view of the anatomy, allowing...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - April 10, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Emergency Medicine Pediatrics Radiology Surgery Source Type: news
ECD Esophageal Therapeutic Hypothermia Device Coming to Europe
Advanced Cooling Therapy, a company out of Chicago, Illinois, won the European CE Mark approval for its Esophageal Cooling Device (ECD) used to control patient temperature from deep within the body. Fast and convenient cooling of patients suffering from a heart attack, as an example, can help prevent further damage to the brain and other organs.
The ECD device is similar to traditional gastric tubes, but has three lumens within. Two are used to pump a thermal liquid through the device, while the third provides suction for decompression and drainage.
From the announcement:
The ECD can be rapidly inserted by most trained he...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - April 9, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiac Surgery Cardiology Critical Care Source Type: news
Toshiba Xario 200 Ultrasound Now Available in U.S.
This week at the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine annual meeting in Las Vegas, Toshiba is launching its Xario 200 compact ultrasound. Designed to fit into tight spaces, it weighs 165 lbs (75 kg), and features Toshiba’s Precision Imaging, Differential Tissue Harmonics (D-THI) and Advanced Dynamic Flow (ADF) technologies.
This is a general purpose device for a variety of applications, capable of scanning up to a 40 cm depth.
Some of the features from the product page:
Volume imaging suite: A full-fledged solution featuring a comprehensive set of imaging modes including surface rendering, MultiView and MP...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - March 31, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiology Critical Care Emergency Medicine Ob/Gyn Radiology Surgery Urology Vascular Surgery Source Type: news
Toshiba Xario 200 Ultrasound Now Available in U.S. (VIDEO)
This week at the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine annual meeting in Las Vegas, Toshiba is launching its Xario 200 compact ultrasound. Designed to fit into tight spaces, it weighs 165 lbs (75 kg), and features Toshiba’s Precision Imaging, Differential Tissue Harmonics (D-THI) and Advanced Dynamic Flow (ADF) technologies.
This is a general purpose device for a variety of applications, capable of scanning up to a 40 cm depth.
Some of the features from the product page:
Volume imaging suite: A full-fledged solution featuring a comprehensive set of imaging modes including surface rendering, MultiView and MP...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - March 31, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiology Critical Care Emergency Medicine Ob/Gyn Radiology Surgery Urology Vascular Surgery Source Type: news
HAMILTON-H900 Humidifier with Built-In Condensation Prevention Technology
Hamilton Medical (Bonaduz, Switzerland) has unveiled a new clinical humidifier. The device was designed to reduce the number of cables used, to integrate components into a simpler system, and to help control condensation and “rain-out” within the tubing.
Since a cool tube having warm humid air moving through it will form condensation on its walls, the device integrates heating coils within the tubing so that the temperature of the air stays constant throughout its journey. The device can be controlled through a touch interface or can also be connected and operated through a compatible ventilator.
The HAMILTON...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - March 20, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Critical Care Source Type: news
Evoked Potential Assessment Device Prevents Arms and Legs from Falling Asleep During Surgery
All of us have fallen asleep on an arm or sat too long on a twisted leg only to get up and feel like the limb itself has fallen asleep. Nerves can get stretched and compressed, and blood vessels squeezed, and, if a person’s position is not corrected soon enough, it can lead to permanent tissue damage, compartment syndrome and such . This scenario can happen during surgery, but since the patient is anesthetized and can’t feel, the situation usually goes undetected and can lead to significant damage. A new product from SafeOp, a company out of Hunt Valley, Maryland has received FDA clearance for “positionin...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - March 19, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiac Surgery Neurology Ob/Gyn Orthopedic Surgery Thoracic Surgery Vascular Surgery Source Type: news
Puritan Bennett 980 Ventilator with Proportional Assist Ventilation Plus Tech Cleared in U.S.
The FDA has cleared Covidien‘s Puritan Bennett 980 Ventilator for use with neonatal patients, children, and adults. The device features Proportional Assist Ventilation Plus (PAV+) technology licensed from University of Manitoba in Canada that provides smarter pumping to optimally synchronize with every patient. This will hopefully allow many patients to get off the ventilator earlier, something studies of proportional-assist ventilation have already indicated.
“We believe mechanical ventilation should be natural enough to enable patients to breathe on their own more quickly,” said James E. Willett, vice p...
Source: Medgadget Anesthesiology - February 27, 2014 Category: Anesthesiology Authors: Editors Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiology Critical Care Medicine Pediatrics Source Type: news
