Archives: 1/2011

Medgadget Exclusive

The 2010 Medical Weblog Awards Finalists: Sponsored by Epocrates and Lenovo

by Gene Ostrovsky on Jan 31, 2011 • 3:56 pm

award lr The 2010 Medical Weblog Awards Finalists: Sponsored by Epocrates and Lenovo

After a careful analysis and consideration, we are pleased to present the finalists of the seventh annual Medical Weblog Awards. But first, a few notes.
Voting will begin this coming Thursday, February 3, 2011 and will close 12 midnight on Sunday, February 13, 2011 (EST). We will have instructions, voting booths, and further details here at Medgadget.com on Thursday.
epocrates on ipod touch The 2010 Medical Weblog Awards Finalists: Sponsored by Epocrates and Lenovo
werwa The 2010 Medical Weblog Awards Finalists: Sponsored by Epocrates and LenovoEpocrates® is generously donating the latest Apple iPod touch® to winners in each category, along with a subscription to the company’s most popular premium product for drug, disease, and lab information, Epocrates® Essentials clinical reference suite.
uybk65i0 The 2010 Medical Weblog Awards Finalists: Sponsored by Epocrates and Lenovo
The grand prize winner in the Best Medical Weblog category will receive a brand new, lenovo logo The 2010 Medical Weblog Awards Finalists: Sponsored by Epocrates and Lenovotop of the line Lenovo® Multi-Touch m90z ThinkCentre, an all-in-one model that Lenovo designed for professional use with medical applications strongly in mind. This powerful computer with a 23” full HD monitor was reviewed by Medgadget, and we were very impressed with its capabilities.
Additionally, the Best Medical Weblog category winner will receive Epocrates Online Premium reference, a premium drug and clinical reference for the web browser. Epocrates Online organizes practical, peer-reviewed drug and disease content with a unique patient-centered approach. The grand prize package is valued at over $2000.
pl23nf The 2010 Medical Weblog Awards Finalists: Sponsored by Epocrates and LenovoAnd to wrap up the prizes, all winners will receive an annual subscription to the Placebo Journal, “The Only Medical Journal That Will Make You Laugh… On Purpose!” In the meantime, check out Placebo Journal’s blog.
We’d like to thank all the blogs for their participation in the contest and for the tremendous writing and reporting that they do throughout the year. Also thanks must be extended to all the readers of our blogs. Without you this would be a thankless job and all of us appreciate your interest and commentary.
And now, please meet the finalists!

  • Best Medical Weblog

    • Celebrity Diagnosis
    Clinical Cases and Images:CasesBlog
    EMCrit blog
    The Sterile Eye
    White Coat Underground

  • Best New Medical Weblog (established in 2010)

    • Celebrity Diagnosis Professional Edition
    The Future Well
    Scepticemia
    Wellness Rounds
    ZDoggMD

  • Best Literary Medical Weblog

    • other things amanzi
    The Quack Doctor
    Reflections of a Grady Doctor
    StorytellERdoc
    White Coat Underground

  • Best Clinical Sciences Weblog

    • Academic Life in Emergency Medicine
    GeriPal
    EMCrit blog
    Renal Fellow Network
    Resus M.E!

  • Best Health Policies/Ethics Weblog

    • 33 charts
    Covert Rationing Blog
    EverythingHealth
    The Health Care Blog

  • Best Medical Technologies/Informatics Weblog

    • Dalai’s PACS Blog
    HIStalk
    iMedicalApps
    NanoTechGalaxy
    ScienceRoll

  • Best Patient’s Blog

    • Brass and Ivory
    Dean’s Stroke Musings
    Diabetes Mine
    Dispatch From Second Base
    Wheelchair Kamikaze
    The 2010 Medical Weblog Awards announcement…
    The 2010 Medical Weblog Awards nominees…

    Plastic Surgery

    FDA Approves Osyris Medical’s LipoControl System to Destroy Fat with Lasers

    by Smit Shah on Jan 31, 2011 • 9:45 am

    lipocontrol mannequin FDA Approves Osyris Medicals LipoControl System to Destroy Fat with LasersLille, France based Osyris Medical has announced FDA 510(k) clearance of its LipoControl system for lipolysis. The LipoControl system uses a 980nm laser to break down fat deposits. Using magnetic tracking, the LipoControl can also provide real-time imaging of the target area, and can compensate for movement.
    Some features from the product page:

    •Real-time visualization of the area to be treated on the screen, thanks to its tracking system, by magnetic field
    •Automatic adjustment of laser power to compensate the movement of cannula
    •Laser power increased as speed of cannula increases, decreases as cannula slows down
    •Laser power shuts off whenever the cannula stops moving over treated area
    •On-screen energy mapping which shows distribution energy in real-time for optimization of results. The visualization allows an homogenous distribution and avoid over treated areas.

    We can’t help but note that the CGI model female above would probably not need this procedure.
    Press release: Osyris Medical Receives FDA 510(K) For LIPOCONTROL(TM) Laser Assisted Lipolysis System…
    Product page: LipoControl™…

    Cardiac Surgery

    Sorin’s Sutureless Perceval S Aortic Valve Cleared for Sale in Europe

    by Smit Shah on Jan 31, 2011 • 8:35 am

    1q43krx6 Sorins Sutureless Perceval S Aortic Valve Cleared for Sale in EuropeSorin Group announced today that its Perceval S Aortic Valve replacement has been CE marked. Unlike traditional heart valve replacements, the Perceval S is self-anchoring, which means that it does not need to be sutured into place. Because no sutures are required, using the Perceval S results in reduced procedure time for aortic valve replacements.
    From the press release:

    The valve’s functional component is made of bovine pericardium and is mounted on a super-elastic alloy frame. This state-of-the-art system builds on a clinically proven stentless aortic pericardial valve implanted in over 10,000 patients with proven durability and optimal hemodynamics. Clinical results in the first 180 patients implanted with Perceval S show a significant reduction in surgical procedural time for both isolated and complex aortic valve replacement with aortic cross-clamp times typically reduced by at least 50%. Perceval S leverages the reliability of gold-standard cardiac surgical results. The hemodynamic performance was outstanding with low pressure gradients and large effective orifice areas at 1 and 2 years follow-up.

    Press release: Sorin Group Receives CE Mark Approval for the Innovative Self-Anchoring Aortic Heart Valve, Perceval™ S…

    Ob/Gyn / Surgery / Thoracic Surgery / Urology

    InnoPort from Innovia Now Available in U.S.

    by Gene Ostrovsky on Jan 31, 2011 • 5:31 am

    ec1o64zw InnoPort from Innovia Now Available in U.S.Single port access surgery, a laparoscopic procedure with just one incision, is seeing increased use, and companies are stepping up to make it easier and safer. Innovia out of Miami, Florida has released its InnoPort laparoscopy access device to the U.S. market. Up to three rigid, curved, or articulating devices can be used via the port at the same time with two additional ports for insufflation and exhausting smoke.

    The InnoPort™ is Innovia LLC’s new laparoscopic Single Port Access device comprising a hollow flexible cone secured in the incision with two stay sutures. The InnoPort has three 5mm ports with bellowed walls to allow a wide range of manipulation without jeopardizing pneumoperitonium as well as two ancillary ports which permit insufflation and smoke exhaustion. Surgeons report that they like this device because it is easy and quick to place and remove, the stay sutures prevent inadvertent pop-out, the exhaust port can double as a fourth port for cholangiogram catheter entry and the hollow cone allows removal of specimens without contacting surrounding tissue.

    Product page: InnoPort…
    Press release: Innovia Enters the Single Incision Laparoscopy Market With the InnoPort™

    Society

    Your Avatar Could Affect the Way You Live

    by Scott Jung on Jan 31, 2011 • 4:05 am

    4atlukd4 Your Avatar Could Affect the Way You LiveIf you own a Nintendo Wii, have played World of Warcraft, or have seen James Cameron’s cinematic spectacle, then you probably know what an avatar is. And because an avatar is simply a representation of yourself that you design, your avatar’s attributes could be as similar or different to you as you wish. [This editor's avatar is 6' 8", has a six-pack, wears only fine European clothing, and has the voice of YouTube sensation Ted Williams.]
    Do online avatars have any influence on their real-world counterparts? Researchers at the new Virtual Human Interaction Lab (VHIL) at Stanford University think so.
    According to VHIL, while avatars tend to be idealized versions of their users, evidence has suggested one’s virtual avatar does indeed influence a person. In one experiment, a female student’s avatar was shown losing weight by running and gaining weight when standing still. As a result, it motivated this student to exercise more over a 24-hour period. In another experiment, watching a student’s avatar progressively age caused him to want to save money instead of spending it on partying.
    With advances in technology continually making the world more and more connected with itself, avatars will continue to evolve also. According to Jeremy Bailenson, creator of VHIL, “avatars will soon play an even bigger role in our lives online. How we shape our own avatars and how we interact with others could have profound influences on our behavior.”


    Article from the NSF: Virtual Self…
    Image credit: cor23

    Anesthesiology / Medicine / Pediatrics

    Intravascular Continuous Glucose Monitoring from InvivoSense

    by Paul Pisklak on Jan 31, 2011 • 2:02 am

    4wx4pi5p Intravascular Continuous Glucose Monitoring from InvivoSenseWe’ve featured continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices on Medgadget before, but they had the disadvantage of being subcutaneous, and it’s unclear how long the subcutaneous reading takes to catch up to the actual blood glucose level.
    A new device from InvivoSense, a company based in Norway, is inserted through a central line port and measures, in real-time, the glucose concentration in the blood. This could help us to more accurately study the effect of “tight” vs. “permissive” glucose control. The studies so far on this subject have been contradictory, and part of the reason may be that glucose is normally measured only hourly at the most.
    The sensor uses a new technological approach based on the shrinking and swelling of a boronic acid–incorporated hydrogel when exposed to various glucose concentrations. This device was validated in the January 2011 issue of Anesthesiology, and it showed remarkable correlation with the gold standard methods.
    Image: Biosensor comprising Smart-Gel Tip bonded to fibre-optic.
    InvivioSense homepage…
    Abstract in Anesthesiology: Continuous measurement of blood glucose: validation of a new intravascular sensor.

    Anesthesiology

    D-Blade from Karl Storz Improves View in Difficult Airway

    by Paul Pisklak on Jan 31, 2011 • 12:49 am

    v7mhj55v D Blade from Karl Storz Improves View in Difficult AirwayThe “difficult airway,” when a good view of the glottis cannot be easily obtained, can be a nightmare for even the most experienced anesthesiologist. The advent of video laryngoscopy has helped this situation, and a new attachment for Karl Storz’ C-MAC system, the D-BLADE, looks promising to advance the state of the art even further. This blade is more curved than most video laryngoscope blades, which is supposed to bring the vocal cords into view more easily.
    An article in the latest Anesthesia and Analgesia evaluated this new device, and found that it did as well or better than a traditional Macintosh blade in routine intubations. The real test came when the study authors had a poor view with a Macintosh blade. In these patients, the D-BLADE improved the view from a C/L view 3 or 4 to a I or IIa, thus suggesting the use of this blade as a rescue device. Of note, due to the extreme curvature of the blade, a “semiflexible tube guide” was required as part of the intubation. See the links below for the product page and abstract and here’s a YouTube demonstration of how to use this new tool correctly and incorrectly.
    Abstract in Anesthesia & Analgesia: First Clinical Evaluation of the C-MAC D-Blade Videolaryngoscope During Routine and Difficult Intubation
    Product page: D-BLADE…

    Uncategorized

    HealCam: Talk Health With Others Just Like You

    by Gene Ostrovsky on Jan 30, 2011 • 3:39 pm

    healcam screen s HealCam: Talk Health With Others Just Like You
    We’d like to invite our readers to check out     HealCam, our free no registration video chat service for people with medical conditions.
    If you or someone you know would like to meet someone else with a similar ailment, it takes less than a minute to pair up with another person.
    Link: HealCam

    Medgadget Exclusive

    Medgadget Goes to Macworld 2011

    by Scott Jung on Jan 28, 2011 • 11:01 am

    23a34f Medgadget Goes to Macworld 2011This weekend, Medgadget was at Macworld 2011 in San Francisco to check out some of the latest and greatest products for the iPod, iPod Touch, iPad, iPhone, and Mac. Amongst the aisles and rows of mobile accessories, software, and eager Apple enthusiasts were a handful of medical apps designed to educate, alleviate health problems, and make your medical practice more efficient. Want to know where your flexor digiti minimi brevis is? There’s an app for that. Is your snoring so loud that your wife mistook it for an F-14 flyover? There’s an app for her…or that!
    Check out our coverage below:


    Here are links to the products we featured in the video:
    Skeleton System Pro for iPad (Version 2 coming soon!)…
    Snoring U…
    MacPractice…

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