Health and Wellbeing

A simpler, cheaper and more efficient method to recover blood lost during open heart and major trauma surgeries has been developed at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. Called HemoSep, the method has produced successful results during trials at the Kirikkale University Hospital in Ankara, Turkey, improving prospects for cardiac surgery patients. The technology is soon to be launched commercially.  Read More

We’ve seen a number of encouraging developments in recent times related to research into turning calorie-storing white fat cells into heat-generating brown fat cells as a potential weapon in the fight against obesity and related diseases, such as diabetes. The latest news comes out of Ohio State University where researchers have reduced the amount of belly fat in mice by 20 percent by injecting a tiny capsule containing brown fat cells into their abdomens.  Read More

There’s no shortage of heart rate monitor apps available for the iPhone, most of which take their readings by detecting the pulsating blood flow through a finger placed over the iPhone camera’s lens. But we’ve recently seen the release of a new kind of heart rate app that doesn’t require any physical contact with the phone as it takes its readings by simply looking at your face.  Read More

The leading cause of death in children worldwide, pneumonia kills an estimated 1.4 million children under the age of five every year - more than AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined. Now, a team of scientists at the University of Melbourne, Australia has created “StethoCloud”, a cloud-based app for smartphones that can help diagnose conditions like pneumonia without the need for a doctor.  Read More

Researchers in the U.K. have developed a “magic carpet,” but not of the mythical flying variety. The new device consists of a carpet underlay embedded with plastic optical fibers and electronic sensors that can detect and map a person's walking patterns. With all of us progressing inexorably towards the age when the consequences of a fall can become much more serious than an embarrassing inconvenience, the researchers say the smart carpet is aimed at cutting the roughly 50 percent of hospital admissions in the over 65 age group in the U.K. that are the result of falls.  Read More

There are ongoing moral and ethical battles concerning the farming and application of human embryonic stem cells in medical research and applications. Without judging any of the viewpoints represented in the fracas, it is clear that the stem cell world would be a friendlier place if the harvesting of embryonic stem cells were not necessary. Toward this goal, Johns Hopkins scientists have developed a reliable method to turn the clock back on blood cells, restoring them to a primitive stem cell state from which they can then develop into any other type of cell in the body.  Read More

Australia has a bit of a history when it comes to pioneering cyborg technology. The country was home to the first functioning bionic ear implant in 1978 and now, in 2012, comes a new version of a bionic eye, with Bionic Vision Australia (BVA) researchers announcing the success of their first retinal implant trial.  Read More

Most people probably know that plaque buildup in the arteries surrounding the heart is one of the major causes of heart disease. The reason that the plaque does accumulate, however, is often due to an inflammation of the artery walls. Recently, scientists from California’s La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology were able to identify the type of immune cells responsible for that inflammation. With this knowledge in hand, they now hope to be able to develop a vaccine for heart disease.  Read More

Retinal prostheses such as the Argus II, Bio-Retina and the Retina Implant AG microchip all work – more or less – by stimulating the retina’s ganglion cells with light-induced electrical signals. The images produced in the patient’s visual cortex tend to be quite rudimentary, however. This is partially because the rate at which the signals are sent isn’t the same as the rate of neural impulses normally produced by a retina. Now, researchers have deciphered the neural code used by mouse ganglion cells, and used it to create a prosthesis that reportedly restores normal vision to blind mice. They have additionally deciphered the neural code of monkeys, which is close to that used by humans, so a device for use by blind people could also be on the way.  Read More