7 ways the coronavirus is affecting medtech

From Medical Design & Outsourcing

• Abbott launches study of next-gen ablation catheter
  Abbott today announced it has enrolled the first participants in its TactiFlex PAF IDE study to evaluate the performance of the TactiFlex Ablation Catheter, Sensor-Enabled. The catheter is designed to treat people suffering from paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) with symptoms that are unable to be managed by medication. TactiFlex combines Abbott’s contact force-sensing technology within… […]
• This implantable transmitter could provide a wireless option for biomedical devices
  The Purdue University research team is touting a fully implantable radio-frequency transmitter chip they developed for wireless sensor nodes and biomedical devices. The transmitter chip consumes the lowest amount of energy per digital bit among similar technologies published to date, according to the researchers, who published their results in the journal IEEE Transactions on Circuits… […]
• How a Mars rover is enabling better surgical robots
  From the Perseverance Mars Rover on its way to Mars to race cars, maxon (Taunton, Mass.) credits the aerospace and automotive industries with presenting demanding design challenges that are bearing fruit in other spaces such as surgical robotics. The company’s GPX UP planetary gearbox, for example, is well-suited to provide haptic feedback for surgeons because it… […]
• Australian researchers think they’ve found a way to attach hydrogels to medical implants
  A research team at the University of Sydney said that it developed a plasma technology to attach hydrogels to polymeric materials. In a paper published in Advanced Functional Materials, the team of biomedical engineers said the plasma technology attaches the jelly-like hydrogel substances that are structurally similar to human soft tissue to the polymeric materials,… […]
• Steris ticks up on Street-beating Q1
  Steris (NYSE:STE) shares ticked up as the market closed today after reporting first-quarter results that beat the consensus forecast. The Dublin, Ireland-based sterilization and surgical products company posted profits of $88.1 million, or $1.03 per share, on sales of $668.9 million for the three months ended June 30, 2020, for a 3.9% bottom-line gain despite a… […]
• Times Microwave Systems introduces next-gen micro coaxial cables
  Times Microwave Systems recently launched PhaseTrack 047, which the Wallingford, Conn.–based company describes as a phase stable, highly flexible, micro coaxial cable. Designed for DC to 70 GHz frequency ranges, PhaseTrack 047 is meant to meet size and performance needs for healthcare, spaceflight, 5G and telecom, test measurement and many other “in-the-box” applications. The smaller… […]
• DTW: What in the world will Thrive Earlier Detection do with $257 million?
  In this week’s podcast, two executives from Thrive Earlier Detection explain how the “turbo-charged” diagnostics company intends to upend how, when and where cancer is diagnosed. Dr. Isaac Kinde, co-founder and head of research and innovation, walks us through the company’s CancerSEEK test and how the company is marrying new technology with an innovative clinical… […]
• How the resumption of elective surgery may spur demand for high-volume surgical instruments
  (Image courtesy of Micro) Hospitals’ need for single-use surgical instruments may spike as they resume elective procedures following the worst of COVID-19. Outsourcing with a credible tubing partner allows OEMs to focus on core competencies internally and free up other resources for maximum competitive advantage. Jim Jock, Micro As elective surgeries resume during this time… […]
• Dems seek to force EPA action on ethylene oxide monitoring
  Democrats in both houses of Congress have introduced legislation that would force the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to better monitor emissions of ethylene oxide (EtO) from plants that manufacture the toxic gas or use it to sterilize medical devices. The Public Health Air Quality Act of 2020, sponsored by Sen. Tammy Duckworth (Ill.) and Rep.… […]
• Schurter offers electrical components for harsh medical environments
  Schurter said today that it offers high-performance AC connectors, circuit protection, switches and EMC products to safely and reliably optimize performance for critically needed COVID-19 medical devices, including ventilators, respirators, diagnostic, therapeutic and laboratory equipment. The DG12 series power entry modules integrate an IEC inlet, EMC filter and rocker-style circuit breaker with optional IP67 protection,… […]
• How laser inversion enables multi-materials 3D printing
  Researchers invent new technique that could transform additive manufacturing processes, potentially enabling the printing of circuit boards, electromechanical components, and perhaps even robots. 3D printing uses digital manufacturing processes to fabricate components that are light, strong, and require no special tooling to produce. One of the most widely used manufacturing processes, selective laser sintering (SLS),… […]