Medical
Device to corral viable sperm may speed IVF process
For couples hoping for a baby via in vitro fertilisation, chances have improved. A process that once took hours now takes minutes: Cornell scientists have created a microfluidic device that quickly corrals strong and speedy sperm viable for fertilisation. Conventional methods to separate vigorous, motile sperm is tedious and may take up to several hours to perform.
Aortic valve system demonstrates high performance
A new study evaluating the safety and performance of the Boston Scientific ACURATE neo2 Aortic Valve System, a next generation transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) system, demonstrated a high procedural success rate and a low rate of paravalvular aortic regurgitation at 30 days post procedure. Results from the ACURATE neo2 CE-Mark Study, a single-arm, multi-center study, were presented at the annual congress of PCR London Valves, in Lon...
Special antibodies could lead to HIV vaccine
Around one percent of people infected with HIV produce antibodies that block most strains of the virus. These broadly acting antibodies provide the key to developing an effective vaccine against HIV. Researchers from the University of Zurich and the University Hospital Zurich have now shown that the genome of the HI virus is a decisive factor in determining which antibodies are formed.
Innovation improves the diagnosis of dizziness
Half of over-65s suffer from dizziness and problems with balance. But some tests to identify the causes of such problems are painful and can risk hearing damage. Now, researchers from Chalmers have developed a new testing device using bone conduction technology, that offers significant advantages over the current tests. Hearing and balance have something in common. For patients with dizziness, this relationship is used to diagnose issu...
Doctors pair with AI to improve diagnosis
Stanford University School of Medicine and Unanimous AI have presented a study showing that a small group of doctors, connected by intelligence algorithms that enable them to work together as a 'hive mind,' could achieve higher diagnostic accuracy than the individual doctors or machine learning algorithms alone. The technology used is called Swarm AI and it empowers networked human groups to combine their individual insights in real-time, using A...
Artificial synaptic device simulates the function of human brain
A research team led by Director Myoung-Jae Lee from the Intelligent Devices and Systems Research Group has succeeded in developing an artificial synaptic device that mimics the function of the nerve cells (neurons) and synapses that are response for memory in human brains. Synapses are where axons and dendrites meet so that neurons in the human brain can send and receive nerve signals; there are known to be hundreds of trillions of synapses ...
Chip controlling exoskeleton keeps the brain cool
Researchers from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology have developed a model for predicting hand movement trajectories based on cortical activity: Signals are measured directly from a human brain. The predictions rely on linear models. This offloads the processor, since it requires less memory and fewer computations in comparison with neural networks. As a result, the processor can be combined with a sensor and implanted in the cranium.
Focused delivery for brain cancers
A person’s brainstem controls some of the body’s most important functions, including heart beat, respiration, blood pressure and swallowing. Tumour growth in this part of the brain is therefore twice as devastating. Not only can such a growth disrupt vital functions, but operating in this area is so risky, many medical professionals refuse to consider it as an option.
The need for EMI filtering in medical devices
Medical devices are increasingly using sensitive analogue electronics, wireless technologies and microprocessors, which brings EMC considerations to the fore, says David Armitage, Schaffner
The latest protocol for creating human cortical organoids
Writing in the current online issue of the journal Stem Cells and Development, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine have described development of a rapid, cost-effective method to create human cortical organoids directly from primary cells. Experimental studies of developing human brain function are limited. Research involving live embryonic subjects is constrained by ethical concerns and the fragile natu...