Should I participate in a cardiac rehabilitation program?
Cardiac rehabilitation (CR), or “cardiac rehab,” is a multifaceted, medically supervised program proven to improve heart health and outcomes in people with certain types of cardiovascular disease. CR revolves around three major components: an individualized exercise and training program, education on topics related to heart health, and stress reduction.
CR is currently recommended for the following diagnoses: angina (chest pain); heart attack with or without angioplasty or bypass surgery; heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF); and heart surgery including heart valve procedures or heart or heart/lung tran...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - October 10, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Hicham Skali, MD, MSc, FACC Tags: Exercise and Fitness Health Heart Health Source Type: blogs
Can your CPAP make you sick?
I keep hearing radio ads about high-tech cleaners for continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machines, which are used to treat sleep apnea. Bacteria and mold can accumulate in different parts of the device. Just the touch of a button, say the ads, and all undesirable organisms lurking in the CPAP pump, tube, and mask will be zapped into oblivion. Your CPAP system will be sanitized and ready for use while you sleep.
But can a CPAP system really lead to illness? And if so, do we need space-age technology to clean a CPAP machine?
Wait: What is a CPAP system and why is one needed?
A CPAP machine is one of the best treatmen...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - October 8, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Heidi Godman Tags: Fatigue Health Infectious diseases Sleep Source Type: blogs
Disc Pump for Less Obtrusive Ambulatory Blood Pressure Systems
TTP Ventus, the UK-based developer of the Disc Pump, has recently begun working on a new application for this technology – ambulatory blood pressure systems. The company claims that the Disc Pump, which is a miniaturized, quiet, and highly efficient pump, could revolutionize ambulatory blood pressure measurements.
At present, 24-hour blood pressure monitors are commonly used to monitor blood pressure at regular intervals throughout the day and night. Such devices typically use motor-driven diaphragm pumps to inflate a cuff on the upper arm. However, these pumps are bulky and noisy, and affect airflow pulsation within...
Source: Medgadget - October 1, 2019 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Anesthesiology Cardiology Diagnostics Exclusive Medicine Source Type: blogs
Sleep driving and other unusual practices during sleep
Most people have talked or walked during sleep at some time in our lives. However, some people exhibit more unusual complex behaviors while asleep, including eating and driving. These types of behaviors, called parasomnias, come about when parts of our brain are asleep and other parts awake at the same time. Parasomnias, while generally considered normal in a healthy child, can be a cause for concern when they develop in adults. Earlier this year the FDA issued a “black box” warning for the sleep medications eszopiclone, zaleplon, and zolpidem, given reports of sleep behaviors that resulted in injuries from falls, car ...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - September 16, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Suzanne Bertisch, MD, MPH Tags: Fatigue Sleep Source Type: blogs
Flo Women ’s Health App Announces Launch of PCOS Health Assistant
In recognition of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) Awareness Month, Flo, a digital platform for women’s health and wellbeing, has announced the successful launch of PCOS Health Assistant, a self-assessment tool to help identify the risk of PCOS.
PCOS is a hormonal disorder found in women that can cause irregular periods, higher than normal levels of androgen, a male hormone, and enlarged or malfunctioning ovaries. The condition can also lead to infertility, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, sleep apnea, and strokes. Despite affecting 1 in 10 women of childbearing age, PCOS is hard to diagnose.
To address this ...
Source: Medgadget - September 6, 2019 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Medgadget Editors Tags: Ob/Gyn Source Type: blogs
Trouble keeping information in mind? Could be sleep, mood — or age
You’re heading to the market. You need to pick up eggs, cheese, milk, bread, tomatoes, carrots, and string beans. Can you keep those items in mind by repeating them to yourself? You arrive at your usual market, but it is unexpectedly closed. A passerby gives you verbal directions to a new market. Can you close your eyes and visualize the route? Both activities tap working memory — that is, your memory for information that you need to actively keep “in mind” and manipulate often.
We use this type of memory every day. For example, when we are comparing two or more options — whether dinner entrees, health plans, or ...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - June 21, 2019 Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Andrew E. Budson, MD Tags: Memory Mental Health Sleep Source Type: blogs
Should The Experience of Sleep Apnea Treatment Be Like An Alien Attack?
Loud snoring ruins the lives of millions: the snorers’ as well as those who have to listen to it frequently. However, snoring isn’t just an annoyance. It can hint at a serious sleeping disorder: sleep apnea. Not only does the condition cause frustration in itself, but when looking at the comfort of it, its treatment could be compared to an attack of Aliens. How could digital health help patients who undergo sleep apnea treatment? Are there any ways to get rid of the Aliens?
Almost 1 in 7 people have sleep apnea worldwide
‘Laugh and the world laughs with you, snore and you
sleep alone’, that’s one of the tro...
Source: The Medical Futurist - June 13, 2019 Category: Information Technology Authors: nora Tags: Empowered Patients Health Sensors & Trackers adherence health app patient engagement sleep sleep apnea sleep apnea treatment sleep app technology therapy Source Type: blogs
WatchPAT One, a Fully Disposable At-Home Sleep Apnea Test, FDA Cleared
Itamar Medical, a firm based in Israel, won FDA clearance for its brand new WatchPAT One system for at-home sleep apnea testing. The system is based on the previously cleared WatchPAT 300 device, but it’s fully disposable and is therefore is not reused between patients, helping to prevent any infections.
The WatchPAT One pairs with the patient’s smartphone via a Bluetooth connection, and a compatible app from Itamar is used to relay data from the device to the patient’s physician once the sleep study is over.
The company believes that many sleep clinics will be able to save money thanks to the device bein...
Source: Medgadget - June 6, 2019 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Medgadget Editors Tags: Cardiology Medicine Net News Source Type: blogs
Survey for Athletes with AF
Hey Athletes:
My colleague, Professor Rachel Lampert, from Yale, along with the StopAF.org patient group, seek to learn more about how atrial fibrillation (AF) and its treatments affect athletic people. If you are an athlete or if you regularly exercise vigorously, please give the Yale researchers a few moments of your time.
Here is the link to the survey.
Since I had AF in the past, I filled it out. It takes only a few minutes.
Prof. Lampert’s research into this area is important because AF affects people in vastly different ways.
It’s weird; while most AF stems from advanced age or lifestyle...
Source: Dr John M - May 23, 2019 Category: Cardiology Authors: Dr John Source Type: blogs
Understanding the hidden costs of Medicare Advantage plans
This article is part of an ongoing series of informative Medicare guest posts written by MedicareFAQ. - Carol
Saving month each month on a low premium plan can be great until serious health issues arise so it's important to know this: Medicare Advantage plans are seductive; there is little to no premium and most plans include ancillary benefits. It makes sense that beneficiaries would choose to enroll in a Medicare Part C option.
However, with a $0 premium on many plans across the nation, beneficiaries have asked: "What's the catch"?
Here's the catch: The out of pocket fee...
Source: Minding Our Elders - March 21, 2019 Category: Geriatrics Authors: Carol Bradley Bursack Source Type: blogs
WatchPAT 300 Uses Multiple Sensors to Detect Sleep Apnea at Home
Itamar Medical, an Israeli firm, released the latest model of its WatchPAT sleep apnea detection system. It’s indicated for use by patients at home to help clinicians diagnose sleep apnea without requiring a visit to the sleep lab. It uses Itamar’s Peripheral Arterial Tone (PAT) technology, which involves measuring the arterial tone changes in peripheral arterial beds. This data, along with that coming from an accompanying pulse oximeter and heart rate sensor, lets an algorithm detect obstructive as well as central sleep apnea.
The new WatchPAT 300 doesn’t require any nasal canula or chest belts, as...
Source: Medgadget - March 21, 2019 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Editors Tags: Cardiology Medicine Source Type: blogs
Nyxoah ’s Genio Implant for Obstructive Sleep Apnea Cleared in Europe
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is often caused by the tongue blocking the airway during night-time breathing. Positive airway pressure (PAP) is the most common way of raising the tongue and allowing air to flow through, but it requires wearing a face mask with a connected hose through the night.
Nyxoah, a company headquartered outside of Brussels, Belgium, just obtained European regulatory approval for its Genio implant-based solution that treats OSA in an entirely new way.
The Genio includes a tiny implant which is surgically inserted, in about 15 minutes into the back of the tongue. It electrically stimulates the tong...
Source: Medgadget - March 19, 2019 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Editors Tags: Cardiology ENT Medicine Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, March 18th 2019
This study provides a possible reason why genes carrying health risks have persisted in human populations. The second found evidence for multiple variants in genes related to ageing that exhibited antagonistic pleiotropic effects. They found higher risk allele frequencies with large effect sizes for late-onset diseases (relative to early-onset diseases) and an excess of variants with antagonistic effects expressed through early and late life diseases.
There also exists other recent tangible evidence of antagonistic pleiotropy in specific human genes. The SPATA31 gene has been found under strong positive genomic sele...
Source: Fight Aging! - March 17, 2019 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
Withings Releases Breathing Disturbance Sleep Monitor
Withings, the famous French maker of stylish activity trackers, blood pressure cuffs, and other personal healthcare and fitness devices, is releasing a breathing disturbance monitor. Built into its Sleep tracking mat, the technology can detect many of the instances when a person’s breathing is interrupted. These events can be signs of sleep apnea, which in turn can lead to a variety of cardiovascular conditions. As a matter of fact, Withings is planning to add true sleep apnea detection to the Sleep mat once it received FDA and European regulatory clearances, something it expects to obtain soon.
Sleep apnea is a cond...
Source: Medgadget - March 15, 2019 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Editors Tags: Medicine OTC Rehab Sports Medicine Source Type: blogs
10 Reasons Why Digital Health Start-Ups Go Bust
While the digital health market is expanding rapidly, ninety percent of start-ups will probably die within two to five years from their inception. That’s an awfully high number, so we looked around what could possibly go wrong with digital health start-ups to avoid the undeserving fate of falling into the abyss.
Being an entrepreneur is tough – especially in
healthcare
As currently there’s an app for everything, you
thought you make one that estimates the time needed to deliver food – so anyone
could order pad thai from the closest place possible. Every single entrepreneur
knows that a good idea is as a tiny ...
Source: The Medical Futurist - March 14, 2019 Category: Information Technology Authors: nora Tags: Business Health Sensors & Trackers Healthcare Design business model companies digital health digital health startups entrepreneurship future healthcare data Innovation patient design scientific scientific validation technology Source Type: blogs
