The COVID-19 pandemic has brought many issues of waste into the spotlight, starting with the sheer quantity of petroleum-based personal protective equipment (PPE) used in the medical field and by everyday users gearing up to go to the grocery store or park. Designer Alice Potts homed in on this problem early, countering it with face shields made from food waste […]

Panasonic has developed a new infrared Medical Imaging Projection System (MIPS) that not only tracks changes in the shape and positions of organs in near real-time, but projects the images directly onto the patient as a guide for surgeons during complex operations. Ever since the discovery of X-rays, imaging technologies have revolutionized surgery and medicine. Even the first blurry shadows […]

A compelling new study, led by a team of Spanish researchers, is suggesting cardiovascular disease in mid-life is linked to neurodegeneration and cognitive decline in senior years. The research found subjects in their 50s with mild hypertension displayed evidence of impaired brain metabolism in areas associated with Alzheimer’s and dementia. Atherosclerosis is a common cause of cardiovascular disease, involving the […]

With everything going on these days, it’s not surprising that many people are looking for healthy, effective ways to naturally boost their immune systems. So what are the best natural immune boosters, and how do they work to keep us healthy? As with any natural remedies, these herbs are not meant to be a replacement for actual medical care. It’s […]

Human sweat contains all kinds of valuable biomarkers that can be used to track different aspects of human health, such as glucose levels in diabetics or metabolic conditions during exercise, and a new breed of wearable sensors promise to make this a rather simple undertaking. Scientists at Switzerland’s École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) have just developed the first of […]

When someone has a skin condition such as eczema or psoriasis, it helps to be able to see all of the tiny ridges and grooves in the affected area. That’s where a portable new device comes in, which is designed to produce 3D images of skin in a matter of minutes. Developed at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, the inexpensive battery-powered […]

For patients with an injured or compromised trachea, the insertion of a stent is often required in order to keep their airway open. A new type of airway stent should remain in place better than others, and will biodegrade when no longer needed. Ordinarily, airway stents are made of either silicone or metal, the latter of which can be difficult […]

Maintaining your regular workout routine isn’t easy due to a lack of access to your usual gear. That extends to warm up gear, which is often a makeshift piece of equipment such as a PVC pipe or dowel rod, which are very simple yet extremely versatile. Unfortunately, versatility doesn’t equal portability – until now. The RomRod is a portable rod […]

In order to minimize the chances of injury, many athletes wear a brace to help support a particularly vulnerable knee joint. Exoskeleton manufacturer C-EXO is taking that idea further, with a “smart” pneumatically activated knee brace. Known as the E-Knee, the device has most of the standard features you would expect. These include flexible support bars running vertically along either […]

Nobody likes needles – at best they’re an unpleasant means to an important end. Microneedle patches could be a painless alternative, and now researchers have developed a way to use them to detect biomarkers at much lower levels, without drawing blood. Microneedle patches are emerging as a less invasive way to deliver drugs or monitor someone’s health. As the name […]