How Concerned Should Patients Be About An Irregular Heartbeat?
By KOUSIK KRISHNAN, MD
As many industries and individuals are struggling publicly with burnout, a new study from the European Journal of Preventative Cardiology links the “burnout syndrome” with atrial fibrillation (afib). The findings are both interesting and valuable. In general, the public benefits from anything that can raise awareness of heart disease, because early intervention directly impacts improved patient outcomes.
However, headlines that describe afib as a “deadly irregular heartbeat” go too far in the name of public awareness. The truth is, afib is not a s...
Source: The Health Care Blog - March 17, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Christina Liu Tags: Medical Practice Patients afib atrial fibrillation cardiac care irregular heartbeat Kousik Krishnan Source Type: blogs
E-luminations: Racing Cars Helps Me Live With Degenerative Swallowing Disorder
It’s not often that a person growing up among the cotton fields of southwest Oklahoma goes on to become a successful manager of global technology companies, but Leland White is not your average person. During his career, he built and managed semiconductor manufacturing plants around the world and provided management consulting services to large corporations and federal agencies. After a successful business career, he retired in Colorado to pursue two passions: downhill skiing and high-performance driving.
Referred to by family and friends as “Lee,” he turned 78 last spring. I talked to Lee about the challenges he...
Source: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Press Releases - March 11, 2020 Category: Speech-Language Pathology Authors: Sharon Baker Tags: Health Care Slider Speech-Language Pathology Dysphagia Swallowing Disorders Source Type: blogs
To screen, or not to screen (for dementia), that is still the question
A leading group of medical experts on Tuesday declined to endorse cognitive screening for older adults, fueling a debate that has simmered for years.
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force said it could neither recommend nor oppose cognitive screening, citing insufficient scientific evidence of the practice’s benefits and harms and calling for further studies.
The task force’s work informs policies set by Medicare and private insurers. Its recommendations, an accompanying scientific statement and two editorials were published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
The task force’s new position c...
Source: SharpBrains - March 11, 2020 Category: Neuroscience Authors: Judith Graham at Kaiser Health News Tags: Cognitive Neuroscience Health & Wellness Alzheimer’s Disease Annual Wellness Visit cognition cognitive decline cognitive-abilities Cognitive-impairment cognitive-screening dementia geriatric psychiatrists geriatricians JAMA Jou Source Type: blogs
Beddr SleepTuner: Medgadget ’s Review of The Novel Sleep Tracker
Conclusion
We thoroughly enjoyed using the Beddr Sleep Tuner and learned a lot of interesting facts about our sleep. We think the device has a lot of potential and applaud the company’s vision to use it in medicine as a validated medical device.
We think Beddr could also have an expanded role in the home as well. In Matthew Walker’s bestselling book Why We Sleep he describes a smart bedroom that adjusts environmental settings, such as temperature and light levels, to optimize a person’s sleep quality. A biometric sensor like the Beddr Sleep Tuner could be the perfect device to monitor one’...
Source: Medgadget - February 19, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Scott Jung Tags: Exclusive Informatics Medicine Source Type: blogs
Onera Bioimpedance Patch to Detect Sleep Apnea
In this study, the potential of using the bio-impedance (bioZ) of the chest as a respiratory surrogate is analyzed. A novel portable device is presented, combined with a two-phase Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) deep learning algorithm for automated event detection. The setup is benchmarked using simultaneous recordings of the device and the traditional polysomnography in 25 patients. The results demonstrate that using only the bioZ, an area under the precision-recall curve of 46.9% can be achieved, which is on par with automatic scoring using a polysomnography respiration channel. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy a...
Source: Medgadget - February 10, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Medgadget Editors Tags: Cardiology ENT Informatics Source Type: blogs
Are you getting enough sleep … or too much? Sleep and stroke risk
This study found an association between stroke risk and longer sleep, longer midday napping, or poor sleep quality. But an association is not the same as causation. Rather than longer sleep duration causing strokes, there are other possible explanations for the findings. For example, people who sleep more at night or nap more during the day may have other risk factors for stroke, such as:
A higher incidence of depression. Excessive sleeping or poor sleep quality may be symptoms of depression, and prior studies have noted higher stroke rates among depressed individuals.
A more sedentary lifestyle. Those who are not active ...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - January 29, 2020 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Robert H. Shmerling, MD Tags: Hypertension and Stroke Sleep Source Type: blogs
CES 2020: The Wows and the Whys in Health Tech Innovation
The 53rd edition of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is officially underway! With over 4,400 exhibiting companies from industries ranging from gaming to digital health showcasing their latest products and technologies, you might need some assistance to stay afloat in the flood of new announcements. Donning our rescue caps, The Medical Futurist team is coming to your aid! We’ve compiled the most exciting (and questionable) CES news relating to digital health that we’ve found at this year’s show. Let’s take a look!
The Wows
Every year at CES, companies come up with promising technologies, some just mer...
Source: The Medical Futurist - January 9, 2020 Category: Information Technology Authors: Prans Tags: Future of Medicine ces digital health Healthcare technology digital technology digital health companies digital health tech Source Type: blogs
Weight loss surgery for children and teens struggling with obesity
Right now, one in 12 children and adolescents in the US are severely obese. If that isn’t startling enough, consider this: among 12-to-15-year-olds, that number jumps to one in 10 — and among 16-to-19-year-olds, it is one in seven. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the best hope for many of these youths may be bariatric surgery. Bariatric surgery is surgery that helps with weight loss by making the stomach smaller and making other changes in the digestive system.
It’s jarring to think about doing irreversible surgery on an adolescent — or a child, as the AAP discourages age limits for bariatric...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - December 13, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Claire McCarthy, MD Tags: Adolescent health Children's Health Diabetes Diet and Weight Loss Parenting Source Type: blogs
Mini-Circuits and Vayyar Imaging Announce 4D Millimeter Wave Imaging Kits: Interview
Last year, Vayyar Imaging, a leader in 4D imaging technology, announced its next-generation CMOS System on a Chip technology and made its first foray into remote patient monitoring with Walabot HOME. Vayyar’s latest announcement came out last week as part of an expanded partnership with Mini-Circuits, a leader in design, manufacturing, and distribution of radiofrequency (RF) and microwave components. Together, the two companies are offering a new development kit for academic and industry researchers to explore and develop 4D millimeter wave (4D mmWave) imaging and sensing applications.
VTRIG-74 Millimeter Wave Im...
Source: Medgadget - December 12, 2019 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Medgadget Editors Tags: Exclusive Source Type: blogs
Cardiology MCQ – Associations of primary aldosteronism
Cardiology MCQ – Associations of primary aldosteronism
Which of the following are associated with primary aldosteronism?
Hypertension
Atrial fibrillation
Obstructive sleep apnea
All of the above
Post your answer as a comment below. (Source: Cardiophile MD)
Source: Cardiophile MD - December 11, 2019 Category: Cardiology Authors: Prof. Dr. Johnson Francis Tags: Cardiology MCQ DM / DNB Cardiology Entrance Source Type: blogs
Opioid Overdose: What Happens and What to Do
The largest risks that come with using opioids are addiction and overdose. An overdose occurs when the body has received too much of a substance or a combination of substances. An opioid overdose can be fatal, which makes it important for all individuals to know the signs of one and what to do if it happens.
What Happens During an Opioid Overdose?
Opioid overdose can occur at any time, even if the opioids are being used as directed and as prescribed. Doctors can accidentally over-prescribe medications or the body can have a reaction that wasn’t expected.
Opioids are a depressant, meaning they slow down the central nervo...
Source: Cliffside Malibu - November 21, 2019 Category: Addiction Authors: Jaclyn Uloth Tags: Addiction Addiction to Pharmaceuticals Heroin Painkiller Substance Abuse drug overdose heroin addiction heroin users opiates opioid opioids prescription drug abuse prescription drug addiction prescription medication Source Type: blogs
The Evolution of " Wearable Health Ecosystems " and Associated Partnerships
I am coming to understand that various types of"wearable health ecosystems" (i.e., wearable business models) are evolving. This is an important step in the creation of consumer-facing, healthcare/wellness systems. The latest example is that of Fitbit partnering with pharmaceutical companies (see:Fitbit collaborating with pharma giants Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfizer). Below is an excerpt from this article:Fitbit and pharmaceutical giants Bristol-Myers Squibb and Pfizer have inked a multiyear partnership to accelerate the detection and diagnosis of atrial fibrillation to reduce the risk of life-threatening e...
Source: Lab Soft News - October 31, 2019 Category: Laboratory Medicine Authors: Bruce Friedman Tags: Diagnostics Health Wearable Healthcare Information Technology Healthcare Innovations Public Health Telemedicine Test Kits and Home Testing Source Type: blogs
AI-Powered Voice Assistance Behind New Digital Health Company Frontive Health (Interview)
Voice assistants are quickly becoming a popular consumer tool that allows users to access libraries of skills, including games, news, and reminders. Last month, Los Angeles-based Frontive Health launched its smart personal health platform to help patients more easily adhere to their care regimens by leveraging Amazon Echo’s voice assistant. Utilizing a “less is more” approach to collating medication instructions, pre-, and post-procedure protocols, and lifestyle modifications, Frontive’s artificial intelligence (AI) enabled technology prioritizes daily actions that lead to optimal patient outcomes.
...
Source: Medgadget - October 25, 2019 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Medgadget Editors Tags: Exclusive Informatics Medicine Rehab Surgery Source Type: blogs
One Ring To Rule Them All? – The SleepOn Go2Sleep Review
We’re so good at sleeping we can even do it with our eyes shut. Still, there’s always room for improvement. Sleep tracking is a great way to get to know ourselves a bit better and even improve our way of life. It’s expensive and complicated to get a professional sleep analysis but with health gadgets on the rise, we have more and more options to take things in our own hands. SleepOn Go2Sleep promises to help us understand our sleeping patterns better through its ring-shaped sleep tracker. We got curious what it can do, so we tested it for a couple of days. Here’s our comprehensive review.
Big idea behind a small...
Source: The Medical Futurist - October 15, 2019 Category: Information Technology Authors: nora Tags: Health Sensors & Trackers fitness future gadget health trackers personalized personalized health review ring sleep sleep apnea sleep app sleep optimization sleep sensor sleep tracker sleep tracking technology wellbeing Source Type: blogs
iRhythm-Verily Partnership: Interview with iRhythm CEO Kevin King
iRhythm and Verily announced a partnership last month to “co-develop solutions intended to provide early warning, diagnosis and management for patients, particularly for those with silent or undiagnosed AF.” We spoke with iRhythm CEO Kevin King to understand how the two companies complement each other and how they can solve the problem together.
Ben Ouyang, Medgadget: Tell us about yourself.
Kevin King: I’ve been CEO of iRhythm now for seven years, since the very early days when our company was private. I’ve led the company’s growth and expansion to where we are today. By way of backgrou...
Source: Medgadget - October 11, 2019 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Ben Ouyang Tags: Cardiology Diagnostics Exclusive irhythm verily Source Type: blogs
