Opening the door to the development of thought-controlled prosthetic devices to help people with spinal cord injuries, amputations and other impairments, neuroscientists at the University of California, Berkeley, and the Champalimaud Center for the Unknown in Portugal have demonstrated that the brain is more flexible and trainable than previously thought. Their new study, publi... (read more)
British health regulators said Tuesday that patients in Britain who received a specific type of all-metal artificial hip — one that was also used widely in the United States — should undergo annual examinations for as long as they have the device to make sure they are not suffering tissue damage or other problems. Previously, regulators in Britain urged that patients with “metal-on-metal” hips — in w... (read more)
For 50 years, scientists had searched for the secret to making tiny implantable devices that could travel through the bloodstream. Engineers at Stanford have demonstrated a wirelessly powered device that just may make the dream a reality. Someday, your doctor may turn to you and say, "Take two surgeons and call me in the morning." If that day arrives, you may just have Ada Po... (read more)
About 15 years ago, MIT professors Robert Langer and Michael Cima had the idea to develop a programmable, wirelessly controlled microchip that would deliver drugs after implantation in a patient's body. This week, the MIT researchers and scientists from MicroCHIPS Inc. reported that they have successfully used such a chip to administer daily doses of an osteoporosis drug normally give... (read more)
Nanodiamonds designed to toughen artificial joints also might prevent the inflammation caused when hardworking metal joints shed debris into the body, according to an early study published this week in the journal Acta Biomaterialia. In the race to create longer-lasting and less-painful artificial joints, University of Alabama at Birmingham researchers are exploring whether nanodiamond coatings can redu... (read more)
Newer metal-on-metal or ceramic-on-ceramic hip implants work no better than traditional polyethylene-containing implants, researchers concluded from a systematic review. Although there are limited comparative effectiveness data, there was no evidence that the newer implant types improved functioning and quality of life or reduced the need for revisions, according to Art Sedrakyan, MD, PhD, of Weill Cornell M... (read more)
A clinical trial found that patients receiving the Sapien valve experienced two and a half times more strokes and eight times as many vascular and bleeding complications than those who did not receive the implant, but they were more likely to survive one year after surgery. After a year, 69 percent of the Sapien patients were alive compared with 50 percen... (read more)
Mela Sciences Inc. (MELA) has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on its premarket application for a non-invasive tool used for early melanoma skin-cancer detection, ending a years-long battle for approval of the device. Shares of the medical device company shot up 13% to $6.10 in premarket trade as its chief executive touted the FDA clearance as "the most import... (read more)
New research suggests that some patients develop a potentially deadly blood infection from their implanted cardiac devices because bacterial cells in their bodies have gene mutations that allow them to stick to the devices. Patients with implants can develop infections because of a biofilm of persistent bacterial bugs on the surfaces of their devices. Researchers found that s... (read more)
Giving a high-five. Rubbing his girlfriend's hand. Such ordinary acts — but a milestone for a paralyzed man. True, a robotic arm parked next to his wheelchair did the touching, painstakingly, palm to palm. But Tim Hemmes made that arm move just by thinking about it. Emotions surged. For the first time in the seven years since a motorcycle accident left him a quadriplegic, Hemmes was reaching ou... (read more)
Scientists believe they are a step closer to enabling paralyzed people to walk and use artificial arms after an experiment in which monkeys moved and sensed objects using only their minds. The monkeys were able to operate a virtual arm to search for objects through brain activity that was picked up by implants -- a so-called brain-machine interface. In a leap forward from previous studies, the primates ... (read more)
As surgeons here sliced through tissue surrounding a failed artificial hip in a 53-year-old man, they discovered what looked like a biological dead zone. There were matted strands of tissue stained gray and black; a large strip of muscle near the hip no longer contracted. Dr. Young-Min Kwon, the lead orthopedic surgeon on the operation, said the damage was more extensive than tests had indicated and... (read more)
The FDA issued a reminder to physicians and patients that the only over-the-counter inhaler for asthma symptom relief will be gone from the market on Dec. 31, as part of an international ban on its chlorofluorocarbon (CFC) propellant. That is the last date that Primatene Mist, delivering aerolized epinephrine, can legally be sold in the U.S., according to an FDA rule issued in 2008. To continue reading, follow the link below.
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