E-Prescriptions In the North

Electronic drug prescriptions can be delivered to pharmacists in all 50 states for the first time this week as Alaska became the final state to join the technological bandwagon.

In the past year, Georgia, South Carolina and West Virginia have all joined the national network, and the change in Alaska regulations means doctors' hieroglyphic handwriting and prescription pads could soon be a thing of the past.

Dick Holm, a member of the state Board of Pharmacy, said the process took so long to get to Alaska because "we're a small state and we address things as they come up." He said the change was not mandated by the federal government.

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It may be legal, but I've never seen it.

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Laparoscopy HD

I have previously posted about my research on the use of high definition TV (HDTV) for surgical endoscopy. I am honored to have participated in the evaluation of the highest resolution surgical system ever created which I used to capture the footage showcased in the amazing upcoming National Geographic HD special “Inside The Living Body” which will be the first surgical procedure broadcast in HD.

What’s also new is that this system allowed me to record footage that will be seen by the lay public in their living room that is higher resolution and quality than virtually any surgeon has ever seen in the OR!

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I will say that most surgeons I know are quite pleased if their laparoscope isn't fogging throughout the procedure with no picture. Barely half the monitors at the hospitals I deal with are even LCD, and they are the older CRT's. Surgery HD is a long way off from the masses at this point unless someone can show the benefit.

Recall that everything used in a hospital costs a ton of money once it gets the medical moniker attached to it. A few years ago, the VCR that a radiologist was using to record barium swallows broke. For a Sony "Medical VCR" they wanted over two thousand grand for it. He kept fighting with administration over the price tag as they didn't want to go for it. After a few months, he finally got fed up, went down to the local Best Buy, and picked one up for a hundred bucks, and of course it worked just as well. I can only imagine how much surgery in HD is going to cost when we consider all of the equipment involved, going for ten times more than in the consumer market.

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Hold Breath While Printing

Hewlett-Packard Co. Friday disputed research published earlier this week that said some of its laser printers may be a health risk to office and home computer users. While it did not directly contest the data gathered by Australian researchers, the U.S.-based printer and computer manufacturer flatly rejected the idea that emissions pose a danger.

"We do not believe there is a link between printer emissions and any public health risk," the company said in a statement.

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Well... What did we expect them to say? Maybe they're better off going with it, and trying to sell the higher consumable cost inkjet printers as the safer alternative.

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Magnetic Eyes

From Engadget:

It looks like the Navy's Office of Naval Research dipping its toes into the oft-explored business of eye-tracking, with a recent patent application revealing plans for some magnetic contact lenses designed to aid fighter pilots and others in need of a hands-free control option.

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Hi Def X-Rays

FUJIFILM Corporation (President and CEO Shigetaka Komori) has announced the debut of the new Dynamix HR System, a high-definition, next-generation computed radiography system and UR-1 high-definition imaging plate for non-destructive testing. A next-generation model of the Fujifilm Computed Radiography digital X-ray inspection system, the Dynamix HR offers high-resolution reading at intervals of 50 micron meters (1 micron meter is 1/1,000 mm), twice the reading density of the previous model, making it capable of detecting even microscopic flaws.

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Erecords

From Forbes:

Despite many hospitals' reluctance to make the investment, installing an electronic medical records system pays for itself in less than two years, a new study finds.

Such a system was put in place at the University of Rochester Medical Center, N.Y., and recouped its initial cost within 16 months, say the authors of a study in the July issue of the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

I'd settle for less wandering around the nurses station searching for charts.

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Pyxis @ Home

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has cleared for marketing the INRange Systems' Electronic Medication Management Assistant (EMMA), a programmable device that stores and dispenses prescription medication for patients' use in the home.

Essentially a computerized medication box, EMMA was designed to be used under the supervision of a licensed health care provider. EMMA can reduce drug identification and dosing errors, and allow health care professionals to monitor patient adherence to medication regimens in an outpatient setting. It may be especially useful for aging patients, as well as those with complex medication regimens such as patients with HIV.

"FDA's clearance of the INRange remote medication management system puts an important safety tool directly in the hands of patients and their health care providers," said Daniel Schultz, M.D., director of FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health. "It will help take away some of the confusion patients can experience when taking prescription medications, and allow care providers to more closely monitor their patients' medications between office visits."

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Wii-itis

From Mlive.com:

Back when Nintendo first unveiled the motion-sensitive controller that makes Wii so much fun, gamers went nuts with speculation. Would our flabby, atrophied bodies be able to handle actual, physical movement?

Of course not! It took a Spanish doctor playing hours and hours Wii Sports tennis to discover that too much Wii can make your arm hurt.

I'm thinking we can add Wii-itis to iPod-itis...

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Big Blue Tracks Flu

From San Jose Mercury News:

IBM said Thursday that it is giving health authorities and others around the world expanded access to free software it partly developed in San Jose to help track bird flu and other infectious diseases.

The software - dubbed Spatiotemporal Epidemiological Modeler, or STEM - can create computer models of how diseases spread geographically. IBM said it would make the software available on the Web site of the Eclipse Foundation, which provides open-source software.

What an idea! Using a computer to track a disease in the information era! Why didn't I think of that...

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The Body In 4D

From Yahoo:

Canadian researchers say they have developed the most detailed model of a human yet, a movable "4D" image that doctors can use to plan complex surgery or show patients what ailments look like inside their bodies.

Called CAVEman, the larger-than-life computer image encompasses more than 3,000 distinct body parts, all viewed in a booth that gives the image height, width and depth, the researchers said on Wednesday.

CAVEman also plots the passage of time -- the fourth "D."

Scientists can layer on the unique visuals of patients, such as magnetic resonance images, CAT scans and X-Rays, giving physicians high-resolution views of the inner workings of the body while it appears to float within arm's reach.

Seems like an expensive replacement for Netter's Anatomy Atlas. Still, the patients will think this is really cool so this would be an impressive marketing gimmick.

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Get Off Your Butt!

From Medical News Today:

It has been suggested that one way to tackle the rising problem of obesity is to find ways to increase physical activity among workers with sedentary occupations. Many people spend most of their working day sitting in front of a computer screen. What if they could work at a computer and walk at the same time? Could this be a way to burn off enough calories to make a difference? This was the thinking behind the experiment performed by two scientists at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, US.

Researchers James Levine and Jennifer Miller designed a vertical work station that allows an office worker to use a computer while walking on a treadmill at a speed of their choice. The machine looks like a regular treadmill superimposed with a metal frame that holds a desk area in front with adjustable arms holding a screen and keyboard with mouse.

Actually, this is simple enough to work...

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Origami Cast

From MedGadget.

We say: Looks like a great idea for having a portable splint in a remote location. We should send one up to the International Space Station, or the next Everest expedition.

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Artificial Snot

From New Scientist Tech:

A substance that mimics mucus has been used by UK researchers to improve the performance of odour-sensing "electronic noses". The enhanced devices can pick apart more complex smells, the team says.

Humans detect smells using more than 100 million specialised receptors on the roof of the nasal cavity, just behind the bridge of the nose. The complex manner in which multiple receptors react to a molecule is used to identify and differentiate them.

Electronic smell sensors work on the same principal but have just tens of sensors. They are used commercially, in food manufacturing quality control, for example, and can sometimes even detect diseases like cancer.

We say: Gee, the only thing that comes to mind is sometimes science is messy. Maybe this can be featured in an upcoming episode of Dirty Jobs.

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Vein Viewer

From MedGadget:

Hey VeinViewer fans and victims of poorly trained phlebotomists, if you live near the Memphis-based Methodist Le Bonheur Hospitals you're in luck. In February, they became the first institution to begin wide-spread use of this new technology.

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Now if we can just get the nurses trained on one of these babies, maybe they would stop calling for IV issues constantly.

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Smarter Clothing

From Defense Tech:

A New Zealand-based performance athletic company has developed a fabric they say can actually analyze trauma to the body and beam telemetry data to a control center so medics will know where and how severely a trooper has been hit.

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At first glance, it seems like a great idea. However, they should probably direct their efforts towards better bulletproof vests and such as prevention is better than treatment. Also, no word on how well the embedded electronics hold up to gun fire.