implantable

New defibrillator signals doctor of patient's irregular heartbeat or device malfunction

... a built-in microchip of Biotronik's Lumos DR-T implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) sends a signal to a satellite via a small transmitter that can be placed on a nightstand, worn on a belt or kept in a purse. In addition, Biotronik's Home Monitoring system virtually instantaneously sends a beat-by-b...

Cyberkinetics, Case to develop system to help restore extremity function

... FDA-approval for a pilot trial in humans using an implantable multichannel, intracortical microelectrode array. The ongoing pilot study aims to test the ability of an individual with high cervical SCI to control computers and other external devices with signals obtained from the motor cortex. Cyberkinetics is c...

Bare metal stents deliver gene therapy to heart vessels with less inflammation in animal studies

...e broader implications for other diseases in which implantable medical devices may be used to deliver gene therapy," said Dr. Levy. Dr. Levy's co-authors included Ilia Fishbein, M.D., Ivan S. Alferiev, M.D., Origene Nyanguile, Richard Gaster, and Howard Felderman, of the Children's Hospital Division of Cardiolo...

New battery technology helps stimulate nerves

...w charge out of the tiny lithium batteries used in implantable devices to help treat nervous system and other disorders. The lithium battery is the workhorse in implantable devices -- stimulators used to jump start the heart and help the central nervous system make critica...

Bioengineers create stable networks of blood vessels

Yale biomedical engineers have created an implantable system that can form and stabilize a functional network of fine blood vessels critical for supporting tissues in the body, according to a report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. For body tissue to survive it must receive oxyg...

Wisconsin scientists find a way to make human collagen in the lab

... or silver, human collagen could form the basis of implantable electric sensors. By attaching certain biological molecules to the wire, it would be possible to create sensors that might, for example, quickly alert a diabetic to falling insulin levels. Similarly, equipped with molecules to recognize specific path...

Engineered heart tissue offers insights into irregular heartbeats, defibrillator failure

...rsen abnormal heart rate, Bursac said. So-called implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICD) monitor the timing of heartbeats and can deliver small or large shocks to correct arrhythmias. Such devices have become increasingly common for patients who have experienced arrhythmias and are therefore at increased...

New 'implanted contacts' designed to fix nearsightedness

... said Dr. Wayne Bowman , who is inserting the new implantable collamer lens, or ICL, today for the first time at UT Southwestern University Hospitals. The ICL can replace or reduce the need for glasses by permanently placing the specially fitted artificial lens in front of the eye's natural lens, rather than r...

Electronic chip, interacting with the brain, modifies pathways for controlling movement

...he University of Washington (UW) are working on an implantable electronic chip that may help establish new nerve connections in the part of the brain that controls movement. Their most recent study, to be published in the Nov. 2, 2006, edition of Nature, showed such a device can induce brain changes in monkeys l...

Five new technologies that promise to transform medicine

...ansmit heart and breathing rates already exist and implantable lenses are well-known. Other emerging technologies include wave technology to isolate cancer cells, fabrication technology to manufacture customised body parts, and the use of miniature robots to track and destroy infections before they cause dise...

Cardiologist's 'living chip' changes science of disease monitoring

... heart rhythm disorders. The company is developing implantable biosensors ?integrating living cells with electronics ?to create a "biological chip." When implanted, this chip can detect physiologic and chemical changes with faster, improved accuracy. These more accurate results, retrieved without invasive testin...

An artificial cornea is in sight, thanks to biomimetic hydrogels

...rks but isn't reversible, Myung says. He envisions implantable contact lenses that can be replaced if the prescription changes. Hydrogel lenses may even make their way deeper into the eye as replacements for inner-eye lenses damaged by cataracts. The researchers have filed four patents for ocular application...

Neural networking nanotubes

New implantable biomedical devices that can act as artificial nerve cells, control severe pain, or allow otherwise paralyzed muscles to be moved might one day be possible thanks to developments in materials science. Writing today in Advanced Materials, Nicholas Koto...

Ultrathin films deliver DNA as possible gene therapy tool

...d release of DNA from surfaces. When used to coat implantable medical devices, the films offer a novel way to ro...ng these nanoscale films to deliver DNA from other implantable devices. The films may also improve methods for engineering lab-grown tissues, in which precisely c...

Are one-third of costly implanted heart devices unnecessary? New study suggests yes

... devices implanted in their chests. Called ICDs or implantable cardioverter defibrillators, the expensive devices are designed to shock damaged hearts back into rhythm and save patients from sudden cardiac death, which kills 300,000 Americans each year. But a new study finds that while many of these patients wi...