Recent months have seen a host of important cardiology research breakthroughs related to new cardio devices and diagnostics, tissue engineering and the overall understanding of heart disease and its treatment. For example, a customizable robotic heart sleeve – developed at Harvard University and Boston Children’s Hospital – has demonstrated advantages over other heart assist devices […]
Stanford University
Your brain doesn’t navigate like a GPS after all
Neurons were once considered the brain’s GPS, and they were subject of a Nobel Prize in 2014 that outlined the discovery of grid cells and specialized neurons that help animals keep track of their location in environments. New Stanford University research suggests that the brain and neurons just might be more complex than that. Lisa […]
This AI can spot skin cancer as well as doctors
Stanford University researchers say that they’ve trained a deep learning algorithm to identify skin cancer as well as dermatologists. The researchers pitted the artificial intelligence against 21 board-certified dermatologists when it came to diagnosing skin lesions. The deep convolutional neural network’s performance was on par with the experts when it came to spotting the most […]
Stanford uses CRISPR to correct sickle cell, human trials planned
Researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine have reportedly used CRISPR, a gene-editing tool, to repair the gene that causes sickle cell disease. The team is planning the 1st human clinical trial using this technique to correct cells with sickle cell disease, according to Reuters. “What we’ve finally shown is that we can do it. It’s […]
Stanford launches independent study of Fibralign’s BioBridge
Stanford University has begun enrollment in an investigator-led clinical study of Fibralign‘s BioBridge collagen matrix designed for treating secondary lymphedema, the company said yesterday. The BioBridge collagen matrix is an implantable, biocompatible and biodegradable surgical mesh with 510(k) clearance for use in surgery to “reinforce and repair soft tissue where weakness and deficiencies exist,” the company said, […]
Apple’s HealthKit takes center stage in 2 studies | MassDevice.com On Call
Stanford engineers touts thin-as-hair endoscope
Stanford researchers developed a working prototype of an endoscope as thin as a human hair that they say "would be the ultimate minimally invasive imaging system."
The so-called "micro-endoscope" can produce images at a resolution 4 times higher than similar devices, and it could have important applications in healthcare.
Are more med students using prostitution to pay tuition? | MassDevice.com On Call
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — A growing number of students claim to know a peer who is using prostitution to pay for med school, according to a new study published in the British Medical Journal.
1 in 10 students surveyed claimed to know someone in the sex trade as a last resort for paying tuition, up from 6% of those surveyed in 2006 and 4% in 2002.
Mako Surgical names new regulatory VP | Personnel Moves
Mako Surgical (NSDQ:MAKO) tapped Lawrence Gibbons to replace its regulatory affairs vice president, James Keller, who resigned effective Feb. 3.
Gibbons, 60, was most recently with Fisher & Paykel Healthcare (NZE:FPH), where he helped establish a manufacturing facility in Mexico and set up the quality system at the company’s New Zealand headquarters.
Is robotic surgery worth the price? | MassDevice.com On Call
MASSDEVICE ON CALL — Complication rates for women with endometrial cancer were roughly the same after standard laparoscopy and robot-assisted surgery, although the robotic procedures each cost about $1,300 more, according to a study in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.