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Cardiologist Expresses Doubt About Implications Of New Leadless Pacemaker

From Medgadget via The Medical Quack:

EBR Systems, a start-up out of Sunnyvale California, and Cambridge Consultants, the technology design and development firm, have developed a leadless pacemaker system for patients with advanced heart failure. The Wireless Cardiac Stimulation System (WiCS) comprises two units, an implantable electrode and an external control unit. The electrode incorporates an ultrasonic, wireless receiver and delivers an electrical stimulus to the heart based on triggering signals from the external control unit.

In its current iteration the WiCS system is designed to work with conventional pacemakers/defibrillators pacing the right ventricle of patients requiring biventricular pacing. The WiCS external control unit senses the pacing stimulus delivered to the right ventricle and initiates a burst of stimulus from the electrode implanted in the left ventricle. According to the company, Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at Dr. Wes*

Surgery Is An Organized Chaos Of Cords, Tubes And Wires

Surgery is messy… and I don’t mean in terms of blood and guts…

What I mean are wires, cables, tubing, etc.

Electric cord for the operating tableLet’s take a routine tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy for example…

  1. Electric cord for the anesthesia machine
  2. Electric cord for the surgeon’s headlight
  3. Light cord from the surgeon’s headlight to the lightbox
  4. Breathing circuit tube from the patient to the anesthesia machine
  5. Carbon dioxide outflow tube from the patient to the anesthesia machine
  6. Suction tubing from the surgical table to the vacuum canister
  7. Vacuum cable from the vacuum canister to the wall socket
  8. Electrocautery cable (along with electric cord to power the machine)
  9. Coblation cable (along with electric cord to power the machine)
  10. IV fluids lines from patient to IV bags
  11. EKG lines
  12. Grounding pad cable
  13. All the wires and cables that go with running a computer
  14. etc. etc. etc. Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at Fauquier ENT Blog*

The New Details About The FDA Regulation Of mHealth Apps

Since the beginning of this year, there have been clues that the FDA will be heading toward clarification of the complex regulatory issues posed by mobile health devices and software. We have previously reported on testimony and public comments by Dr. Jeffrey Shuren, director of the  FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) alluding to coming guidelines.

Today, the FDA finally released a detailed draft guidance of how it intends to regulate this rapidly exploding sector of mobile medical devices and software.

This is what the Emergo group, regulatory compliance consultants, has gleaned from today’s FDA press release: Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at iMedicalApps*

How To Reach Your Fitness Goals Wirelessly

I recently come across BodyTrace, a nice way to combine a bathroom scale that wirelessly uploads and displays your weight and BMI and a website where you can track all the changes with visualized solutions. An excerpt from the description:

We are using the GSM network to transmit your weight to our website. We use these measurements to create weight and BMI charts and by combining this information with additional data that we collect (from food tracker, for example) we can better evaluate your progress and give you feedback on how to reach your goals.

They also have a collaboration with DailyBurn. You can read the whole story from the first idea on the blog.

See more examples of how Web 2.0 or social media can be used in fitness here.

*This blog post was originally published at ScienceRoll*

New Video Game-Based Fitness Devices

Electronic Arts, the video game development company, has announced its next generation of fitness tools. Following up on its popular EA SPORTS Active product line, the release scheduled for this fall should include a heart rate monitor, arm and leg accelerometers, and an online program to track and share one’s workouts. The name for the new system has yet to be finalized, so for now EA just tacked on a “2.0″ to the end of the current name. Read more »

*This blog post was originally published at Medgadget*

Latest Interviews

The Surprising Economic Burden Of ADHD (Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder)

If you can read this you need to download a more recent browser It is estimated that as many as million U.S. adults have ADHD Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder A recent research study publication-pending suggests that the economic burden of ADHD on America could be as high as billion annually. I…

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Is The Adderall Shortage A Harbinger Of Future Drug Supply Problems?

If you can read this you need to download a more recent browser Today most- if not all- Doctor’s offices are strained by the shortage of some prescription medication or vaccine. A month ago President Obama signed his executive order directing the FDA to take steps to reduce drug shortages…

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Latest Book Reviews

Book Review: The First Step To Improve Health Care Is A Close Examination Of How It’s Delivered

My friend and former Chair of the CFAH Board of Trustees Doug Kamerow has written a book that I think you will like. Besides being a mensch and witty as heck Doug is a family doctor and a preventive medicine specialist. In his new book Dissecting American Health Care Commentaries…

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“Your Medical Mind” Explores Factors That Influence A Patient’s Medical Decisions

Recently I had a conversation with Shannon Brownlee the widely respected science journalist and acting director of the Health Policy Program at the New America Foundation about whether men should continue to have access to the PSA test for prostate cancer screening despite the overwhelming evidence that it extends few…

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Book Review: Food Truths, Food Lies

Food Truths Food Lies written by family physician Eric Marcotte M.D. may be the most refreshingly evidence-based diet book of the decade. You will not find a single mention of super-foods magical berries or supplement must-haves in the entire book. What you will find is the cold hard truth about…

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