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New system may help restore vision in eye diseases

Using tiny solar-panel-like cells surgically placed underneath the retina, scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine have devised a system that may someday restore sight to people who have lost vision because of certain types of degenerative eye diseases.

14 May 2012

Killer coating destroys bacteria and fungi on contact

Better than antibiotics, it is being used in contact lenses to prevent infections and biomedical products are the next stage

11 May 2012

DFG to establish seven new research units

The establishment of six new Research Units and one Clinical Research Unit has been decided by the Joint Committee of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation). These networks will offer researchers the opportunity to address current and pressing issues in their fields and to pioneer innovative approaches. As all DFG Research Units, the new groups will work across locations and disciplines. Clinical Research Units combine clinical, applied and basic research.

8 May 2012

Researchers develop new kind of hip implant

Hip replacement is one of the most frequent operations carried out in Germany. Each year, doctors implant some 200,000 artificial hip joints. Often the artificial hips need to be replaced just ten years later. In the future, a new implant currently being developed using high technology materials could help prevent premature revision surgeries.

5 May 2012

Bionic eye helps two blind men see for the first time in 20 years

In a medical breakthrough two blind men have regained partial sight for the first time in more than 20 years after receiving a “bionic eye”. Scientists said the first clinical trials of the microchip eye implant, which measures just 3mm across and is fitted behind the eyeball, have proved successful and “exceeded expectations”.

4 May 2012

ADM hormone plays a significant role in tubal ectopic pregnancies

Tubal ectopic pregnancy (TEP) is currently the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths during the first trimester and a recent study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM) shows that the hormone adrenomedullin (ADM) may help predict this condition.

3 May 2012

STAAR Surgical first quarter total revenue increases 4% to $15.5M

STAAR Surgical Company, a leading developer, manufacturer and marketer of minimally invasive ophthalmic products, today reported that sales of its Visian ICL product in the first quarter ended March 30, 2012 increased 25% to $8.6 million.

3 May 2012

ArthroCare first quarter total revenue increases 5.6% to $92.9 million

ArthroCare Corp., a leader in developing state-of-the-art, minimally invasive surgical products, announced its financial results for the first quarter ended March 31, 2012.

3 May 2012

U of U develops small implantable middle-ear microphone

Cochlear implants have restored basic hearing to some 220,000 deaf people, yet a microphone and related electronics must be worn outside the head, raising reliability issues, preventing patients from swimming and creating social stigma.

30 Apr 2012

WVU Healthcare surgeon implants diaphragmatic pacemaker in young quadriplegic

A surgeon for WVU Healthcare has implanted a diaphragmatic pacemaker in a pediatric patient, making West Virginia University's medical center only the second in the country to use this device on a young patient, after Case-Western Reserve University in Cleveland.

30 Apr 2012

Contraceptive pill could soon be given out to 13 year olds without prescription

According to an NHS report girls as young as 13 should be given the contraceptive pill without having to see a doctor. Normally girls and women can only go on the Pill once they have undergone a thorough consultation with a GP or nurse as it can cause side effects including blood clots.

26 Apr 2012

Louisiana Tech professor, students present at 2012 Experimental Biology meeting

Several graduate and Ph.D. students at Louisiana Tech University, and Dr. David Mills, professor of biological sciences and faculty in Tech's Center for Biomedical Engineering and Rehabilitation Science, are participating in poster and platform presentations at the 2012 Experimental Biology meeting, this week in San Diego, California.

26 Apr 2012

Scientists gain new insight into signaling paths that control insulin production

Scientists from The Danish Stem Cell Center (DanStem) at the University of Copenhagen and Hagedorn Research Institute have gained new insight into the signaling paths that control the body's insulin production. This is important knowledge with respect to their final goal: the conversion of stem cells into insulin-producing beta cells that can be implanted into patients who need them.

26 Apr 2012

Honeycomb biodegradable implant may help nerve regeneration: Study

Patients with severely injured limbs often suffer a devastating loss of sensation. The implants, called “nerve guidance conduits” or NGCs were produced by British and German engineers with a laser technique normally used to write complex electrical circuits. Made from a form of biodegradable plastic, they guide regrowing nerve fibres through individual channels to aid recovery. Once the nerves are fully regrown and reconnected, the device dissolves away.

24 Apr 2012

Study describes new method to manufacture nerve guidance conduits

Engineers at the University of Sheffield have developed a method of assisting nerves damaged by traumatic accidents to repair naturally, which could improve the chances of restoring sensation and movement in injured limbs.

23 Apr 2012

NSF announces 2012 Graduate Research Fellows

From cognitive neuroscience to theoretical physics, this year's National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellows from the University of Houston (UH) have their sights set on careers in fields ranging from medicine to energy.

21 Apr 2012

Nanoscale films promote bone growth

Every year, more than a million Americans receive an artificial hip or knee prosthesis. Such implants are designed to last many years, but in about 17 percent of patients who receive a total joint replacement, the implant eventually loosens and has to be replaced early, which can cause dangerous complications for elderly patients.

20 Apr 2012

Latest fad ‘feeding tube’ diet concerns experts

The New York Times reports that some women with upcoming weddings are opting for a calorie-restricted crash diet consisting of shakes siphoned through a medically implanted feeding tube. It is the so-called “K-E diet” that's given by Dr. Oliver R. Di Pietro in his clinic in Bay Harbor Islands, Fla.

18 Apr 2012

Failure rate of PIP silicone breast implants could be as high as 33.8%

New research published in the Journal of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery suggests that the failure rate of silicone breast implants manufactured by Poly Implant Prosth-se (PIP) could be as high as 33.8%.

18 Apr 2012

DePuy Spine launches VIPER F2 at AANS

DePuy Spine, Inc. has announced the launch of the VIPER® F2 Transfacet Pedicular System (VIPER F2), a transfacet pedicular screw and polyaxial ring system designed to provide stabilization and fixation during degenerative lumbar spinal fusion procedures.

17 Apr 2012