Blind drivers coming to road near you: A group of students at Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering are building a car for the blind. With the assistance of a laser range finder, the car’s on-board computer guides the driver to avoid obstacles.
Liquid/gel morphing material for post-MI heart healing: BioLineRx, a Jerusalem, Israel-based company that develops drugs and medical compounds, just completed a licensing deal for its liquid BL-1040 material, a resorbable calcium alginate-based polymer thought to help the heart recover when injected following an acute myocardial infarction. Already in Phase I/II of clinical trials, the $282 million offered by Ikaria out of Clinton, N.J., is a strong sign of the potential benefits of the BL-1040.
The love affair with Epocrates’ iPhone apps and the new OTC module: Computing Journal is reporting that Epocrates Inc. announced that more than 100,000 physicians are using its iPhone software in their clinical practices. The company further claims that this user load puts Epocrates among the elite, top 5 percent of iPhone developers whose products are used for more than a month after download.
Electronic medical record system powered by Microsoft Office: Bill Crounse of Microsoft Health is using his blog to profile a company that used Microsoft Office applications to create a fully functional EMR system. gloStream Inc. of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., figured that instead of creating a new interface, the company would use something that a lot of people are already comfortable with.
EKG on your mobile, wherever you are: The Dept. of Veterans Affairs is testing a new communication system that can get critical medical information to a physician on his way to the patient’s bedside. Developed by mVisum of Cedar Brook, N.J., the technology allows fast transfer of clinical data to a smartphone for immediate review.
A weekly roundup of new developments in medical technology, by MedGadget.com.