Microbubbles Deliver Drugs Directly to Tumors
When fighting cancerous tumors, all too often the very drugs that can destroy a lesion tend to have significant negative effects on the rest of the body. Doses have to be maintained at moderate levels to avoid side-effects that are even worse than the disease. In light of this, researchers have been trying to develop ways to more precisely deliver cancer drugs so that they target where they are needed.
An exciting new approach, which involves using microbubbles to deliver drugs directly to tumors, has shown significant promise thanks to researchers at the University of Leeds in England. A team there has now shown that ...
Source: Medgadget - December 10, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Medgadget Editors Tags: Materials Medicine Nanomedicine Oncology Source Type: blogs
How to get a 100% pregnancy rate after IVF
The diagnosis of an IVF pregnancy is made by testing for the presence of the pregnancy-specific hormone, HCG ( human chorionic gonadotropin) which is produced only by the placental cells ( trophoblasts) . This is done either by testing the urine at home by doing a home pregnancy test ( HPT) , or by measuring the level of the HCG hormone in the blood . This is how IVF patients find out after an embryo transfer whether they are pregnant or not.In order to increase their pregnancy rates, the sad truth is that many IVF specialists give their IVF patients HCG injections after embryo transfer , in order to fool them. This is the...
Source: Dr.Malpani's Blog - December 2, 2020 Category: Reproduction Medicine Source Type: blogs
A woman in her 40s with acute chest pain
Case written by Neha Ray MD, Brandon Fetterolf MD, and Pendell Meyers MDA woman in her 40s with a history of rheumatoid arthritis, anemia, and thrombocytopenia presented to the ED with acute onset chest pain starting around 5am on the morning of presentation. It woke her from sleep. The chest pain was midsternal, severe, sharp, and constant. On the previous night she had had a mild version of the same pain that she thought was heartburn (esophageal reflux). She reported some radiation to the left arm. She also reports 3 episodes of non-bloody vomiting over the course of the morning. She had a recent admission fo...
Source: Dr. Smith's ECG Blog - November 29, 2020 Category: Cardiology Authors: Pendell Source Type: blogs
The resident made the diagnosis immediately. The faculty was not as certain.
This was sent by one of our G2 residents, working at a different hospital." A 50-something male with a history of hyperlipidemia but no known cardiac history woke up with sudden onset substernal pressure and nausea/vomiting and diaphoresis. "EMS recorded this ECG: What do you think?" The medics were concerned by the story and they saw some ST Depression in the inferior leads and so they gave ASA and nitro with some relief. On arrival to ED we got a 12-lead ECG and looked at the prehospital EKG. " Here is that first ED ECG:Resident: " My interpretation was STD in II, III, and aVF with hyperacute T waves in aV...
Source: Dr. Smith's ECG Blog - November 21, 2020 Category: Cardiology Authors: Steve Smith Source Type: blogs
Extreme shock and cardiac arrest in COVID patient
This is a 30-something healthy patient presented with COVID pneumonia who presented to the ED. He was moderately hypoxic. He had the following EKG recorded:Low voltage, suggests effusion.(see Ken ' s discussion of low voltage below)There is a QS-wave in V2.There is minimal, probably normal STE in V2-V6.A bedside cardiac ultrasound was normal, with no effusion. He had troponins ordered, and the first returned at 72 ng/L (Abbott Architect hs cTnI; URL for males = 34 ng/L). An elevated troponin in a COVID patient confers about 4x the risk of mortality than a normal one.He was admitted on oxygen and was&...
Source: Dr. Smith's ECG Blog - November 12, 2020 Category: Cardiology Authors: Steve Smith Source Type: blogs
Making sense of early pregnancy scans - part 2
When you can see your baby on the vaginal ultrasound scan, you are going to be very excited , because you are one step closer to your dream of having your own baby.However, the truth is that not every pregnancy results in a baby - and this is as true of IVF pregnancies as bedroom pregnancies. About 15% of all pregnancies will miscarry, and IVF does not reduce the risk of a miscarriage. These are usually first trimester miscarriages. Sometimes we can see the baby, but can't see a heartbeat. Please don't panic ! This is quite normal when the scan is done early, because the baby is very small, and it takes time for the h...
Source: Dr.Malpani's Blog - November 9, 2020 Category: Reproduction Medicine Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, November 9th 2020
In this study, young adult mice were submitted to endurance exercise training and the function, differentiation, and metabolic characteristics of satellite cells were investigated in vivo and in vitro.
We found that injured muscles from endurance-exercised mice display improved regenerative capacity, demonstrated through higher densities of newly formed myofibres compared with controls (evidenced by an increase in embryonic myosin heavy chain expression), as well as lower inflammation (evidenced by quantifying CD68-marked macrophages), and reduced fibrosis. Enhanced myogenic function was accompanied by an increased ...
Source: Fight Aging! - November 8, 2020 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
Making sense of early IVF pregnancy scans
IVF patients are very excited when their beta HCG is positive - they are finally pregnant, and can now start dreaming of holding their longed-for baby in their hands in a few months. However, the truth is that not every pregnancy results in a baby - and this is as true of IVF pregnancies as bedroom pregnancies. About 15% of all pregnancies will miscarry, and IVF does not reduce the risk of a miscarriage.This is why we do ultrasound scans - to confirm your pregnancy is healthy. Here is a simple flowchart to help you make sense of how the doctor interprets your pregnancy scan results.Please note that all early pre...
Source: Dr.Malpani's Blog - November 6, 2020 Category: Reproduction Medicine Source Type: blogs
Towards the Use of High Intensity Focused Ultrasound to More Precisely Destroy Tumor Tissue
Focused ultrasound is one of the many approaches used to directly kill cancer cells once they have grown to the point at which a tumor can be identified. It involves generating sufficient heat to kill cells, a fairly direct transfer of energy. Pruning back cancerous tissue is helpful, as tumors manipulate the signaling environment to subvert the immune system's ability to destroy cancerous cells, and constantly generate new mutations that ultimately lead to metastasis and the spread of a cancer throughout the body.
Removing tumor tissue in this way is not a cure, however. Curing cancer requires not just the removal ...
Source: Fight Aging! - November 3, 2020 Category: Research Authors: Reason Tags: Medicine, Biotech, Research Source Type: blogs
Interesting That A Key Innovation Expert Highlights myHealthRecord As A Key innovation Failure!
This appeared last week. Australia, an innovative nation lost to luddites by Laurie Patton | Oct 24, 2020 | Business, Featured, Ladder, The Big Smoke Arena| Once upon a time, Australia was a land of invention and innovation. Sadly, we ’re turning into a nation of luddites. Australia invented the technology underpinning Wi-Fi, along with the ‘black box’ flight recorder, ultrasound scanners and the heart pacemaker – just to mention some of our globally recognised innovations. We have an enviable track record when it comes t o technology. And yet, apparently Prime Minister Scott Morrison just wants us to adopt other c...
Source: Australian Health Information Technology - October 30, 2020 Category: Information Technology Authors: Dr David G More MB PhD Source Type: blogs
Robotic Catheterization for Mitral Valve Repair: Interview with Mark Barrish, CEO of Moray Medical
At present, mitral heart valve failure is treated through invasive surgery or via a transcatheter procedure called Transcatheter Edge-to-Edge Repair (TEER). However, this procedure is difficult to perform, potentially resulting in suboptimal outcomes in challenging cases and if done by inexperienced clinicians.
To address this, Moray Medical, a company based in Mountain View, California, has developed a robotic catheter and associated technology, including augmented reality and a 3D digital interface, designed to make the job easier. In fact, the company claims that using its technology to deliver cardiac therapies can ...
Source: Medgadget - October 28, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Cardiac Surgery Exclusive Radiology Source Type: blogs
The endometrium and infertility - what every infertile couple needs to know about the uterine lining
For an infertile couple, it can be quite scary to go to a doctor , because doctors use a lot of medical jargon .Many of these are difficult long words, which are hard to pronounce, and which they have never heard before. The problem is compounded by the fact that most doctors never bother to take the time and trouble to explain the meaning of these terms.One of these foreign words is the endometrium . Yes, this is quite a mouthful, but it ’s just the scientific word for the inner lining of the uterus . Endo means inside , and metrium means uterus , so don't get confused .If you are willing to be patient and do your resea...
Source: Dr.Malpani's Blog - October 27, 2020 Category: Reproduction Medicine Source Type: blogs
Tubal (ectopic) pregnancy - so near and yet so far !
Being infertile is bad enough, but one of the biggest tragedies is when you get pregnant, but the pregnancy is not in the uterus , and is lodged in the fallopian tubes. This is called an ectopic or tubal pregnancy. Implantation just a fewcentimetres from the right place can make such a big difference !The risk of an ectopic pregnancy is higher in infertile women , because often their tubes are partially damaged ( even though they are open, they may not be functioning properly). Sadly, we can't prevent this.You can have an ectopic pregnancy even after doing IVF , because even though we're transferring the embryo direct...
Source: Dr.Malpani's Blog - October 26, 2020 Category: Reproduction Medicine Source Type: blogs
Everything about follicular tracking ultrasound scan | Ovulation tracking
(Source: Dr.Malpani's Blog)
Source: Dr.Malpani's Blog - October 24, 2020 Category: Reproduction Medicine Source Type: blogs
High Resolution Ultrasound for Precise Tumor Ablation
Researchers at the Max Planck Institute and the University of Stuttgart in Germany have developed a method to create high-resolution ultrasound fields, a capability which may improve the effectiveness of ultrasound therapies and tailor them for individual patients. The technique involves passing ultrasonic waves through water, where hydrogen bubbles help to transform the waves into desired shapes.
High-power ultrasound therapy is currently used to destroy tumor tissues, including prostate and uterine tumors. However, the technique can also damage healthy tissue, since it generates a great deal of heat, so the ultrasound...
Source: Medgadget - October 21, 2020 Category: Medical Devices Authors: Conn Hastings Tags: Cardiac Surgery Neurosurgery Oncology Radiology Source Type: blogs
