By Jay Berry
Pediatrics
Building a whole heart for children born with half: Q+A with a cardiac surgeon
By Tom Ulrich
Teen weight-loss surgeries plateau | MassDevice.com On Call
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — Rates of adolescent weight-loss surgery have hit a ceiling since 2003, according to Chicago researchers.
Running at about 1,000 procedures per year, bariatric surgery among patients aged 10 to 19 years old are no longer on the rise according to a study published by the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, a JAMA Network publication.
Preferred modes of teen weight-loss surgery have also changed, shifting from open surgery to minimally invasive laparoscopic procedures, researchers noted.
FDA clears Cerner’s iPhone-friendly mobile fetal monitoring system
FDA clears Ikaria’s upgraded neonate drug delivery system
Hampton, N.J.-based healthcare company Ikaria won FDA clearances for an upgraded software package and 3 non-invasive respiratory care devices for use with its Inomax DSIR drug delivery system.
The Inomax DS and DSIR deliver the company’s proprietary Inomax vasodilator solution, which the company calls the only FDA-approved drug for treatment of infant hypoxic respiratory failure, associated with pulmonary hypertension.
Research: MindChild and Oxford agree to work on fetal and maternal monitoring
North Andover, Mass.-based startup MindChild Medical landed a research partnership with Oxford University dedicated to developing signal processing software with MindChild’s Meridian, a non-invasive fetal heart rate data monitor.
Medtronic lands FDA win for pediatric oxygenation system
New app distills the fine art of interpreting a child’s blood pressure
New valves for babies that can grow with them
By Tom Ulrich
Weight-loss: Researchers recommend bariatric surgery for obese teens | MassDevice.com On Call
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — Obese teenagers who undergo bariatric weight-loss surgery may have a better chance later in life of staving off diabetes, hypertension, asthma and other health issues than if they remain obese into adulthood, according to a new study.
Researchers retrospectively analyzed rates of teenage obesity among nearly 1,500 morbidly obese adults seeking bariatric surgery, looking for relationships between teenage body weight and health conditions during adulthood.
Patients can innovate too: Putting a wrap on PICC lines
By Tom Ulrich