Remote surgery takes robotic leap with out-of-room cardiac catheter
A new remote-controlled robotic system that allows doctors to operate on cardiac patients while they are in another room has been successfully implemented as a result of expertise at the University of Leicester and University Hospitals of Leicester, United Kingdom. The Remote Catheter Manipulation System (RCMS) by Budd Lake, NJ-based Catheter Robotics Inc. was used by Dr. Andre Ng at Glenfield Hospital Leicester to treat a patient's irregular heart rhythms through "ablation," or the cauterization of specific points within the heart. According to Ng, the RCMS uses a robot arm to guide the catheter, controlled by the doctor from an adjacent room. The surgeon can make very precise movements, using a Game Boy-style control pad, while also carefully studying various monitors that would normally be some distance away. Doctors normally perform the procedure using X-rays, which requires them to wear a lead apron that "is not exactly conducive to the precision and finesse which is essential in this procedure," Ng said. Full Story

Radiofrequency-powered asthma controller approved by FDA
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved the first medical device to use radiofrequency energy to treat severe and persistent asthma in certain adults. According to Jeffrey Shuren, M.D., J.D., director of the FDA's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, Sunnyvale, CA-based Asthmatx Inc.'s Alair Bronchial Thermoplasty System is designed for patients whose severe and persistent asthma is not well-controlled with inhaled corticosteroids and long-acting beta agonist medications. The device consists of a catheter with an electrode tip that delivers electromagnetic, or radiofrequency energy, directly to the airways and heats the lung tissue in a controlled manner, reducing the thickness of smooth muscle in the airways and improving a patient's ability to breathe. The FDA is requiring a five-year post-approval study of the device to study its long-term safety and effectiveness. Full Story

Online doctor visits can lower costs for typical medical problems
Online physician visits result in lower costs for six months after treatment for common medical conditions, according to a study by researchers at the Mayo Clinic's Department of Family Medicine in Rochester, MN. "Impact of Online Primary Care Visits on Standard Costs: A Pilot Study," by James E. Rohrer, Ph.D., Kurt B. Angstman, M.D., Steven C. Adamson, M.D., Matthew E. Bernard, M.D., John W. Bachman, M.D., and Mark E. Morgan, M.D., suggests that online visits "might offer a technological shortcut to lower costs-a shortcut that is urgently needed." Among the advantages: e-visits permit decentralization of healthcare from the clinic to the patient home; online visits save time for patient and provider, as only a single electronic entry is needed by both parties - a stark contrast to phone calls and/or e-mail; and the cost structure associated with e-visits "requires no bricks and mortar," making this an attractive alternative to adding extra patient capacity through traditional means. The article appears in the April issue of Population Health Management. Full Story

Nuclear medicine-based portable imager to hit market in June
Poway, CA-headquartered Digirad Corporation, which specializes in early disease detection products, has received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to market and distribute the nation's first nuclear medicine-based portable imaging system. According to Digirad Chief Executive Officer Todd P. Clyde, the system, known as "ergo," is a large-field, solid-state portable general purpose camera that makes it possible to "image without boundaries" for a diverse range of procedures and areas, including intensive care, operating room, emergency room, pediatrics, trauma units, patient floors, ambulatory services, women's health or research areas. Digirad plans to ship its first production systems beginning in June to a number of leading medical centers in the U.S. and abroad, Clyde said. Full Story

Telemedicine brings healthcare back to Texas county
After more than 10 years, residents of a small Texas county again have access to a doctor without driving for a half hour or more to see one. A community telemedicine program provided by Texas Tech University (TTU)-sponsored Project CHART (Children's Healthcare Access for Rural Texas) now makes it possible for the children of Coke County's 3,800 residents to visit a doctor in a matter of minutes - something they haven't been able to do since the last doctor closed up shop at the start of the century. According to Tammy Royall, school nurse with the Bronte, TX Independent School District, the system connects residents to urban center specialists that were otherwise hours or days away. Texas Tech started its Advancing Telemedicine project in West Texas in 2008 in recognition of the fact that 22 of the state's counties have no physician, according to Debbie Voyles, director of TTU's telemedicine program. The goal is to bring telemedicine to 30 communities through a 26-month period running through August 2011, Voyles said. Full Story

New heartbeat sensors can track patient's position in crowded room
Smart home technology firm PassivSystems Ltd. in Berkshire, England has won a grant from the South East Health Technology Alliance (SEHTA) to test a new, non-invasive electric heartbeat sensor for remote healthcare. According to SEHTA Chief Executive Officer David Parry, the sensors, developed by the University of Sussex, could monitor occupancy in a room and even whether someone's heartbeat has changed. Remote telecare can play a crucial role in helping people to remain in their homes longer rather than going into hospitalized care, but current Passive InfraRed (PIR) sensors require movement to detect a person's presence and cannot easily differentiate between multiple people in a room, Parry said. The ultra-high impedance electric field probe is able to produce high-quality signals from the heart with no resistive contact to the body, which means the probe can also be used to detect brain, nerve fiber and muscle signals, he added. Full Story

eHealth to offer Web marketing of Humana Medicare products
Mountain View, CA-based eHealth Inc. has signed a national agreement for online marketing of Louisville, KY-based Humana Inc.'s Medicare products. According to Bruce Telkamp, eHealth Inc.'s executive vice president of business and corporate development, eHealth will distribute Humana's Medicare Supplement, Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug products through eHealth's online Medicare platform, www.eHealthMedicare.com. eHealthMedicare will guide Medicare-eligible consumers through the online plan selection and purchasing process by providing premium quotes, benefit comparisons and online applications for Humana Medicare products. The platform's easy-to-use, senior-friendly features include an interactive product recommendation tool, out-of-pocket cost calculator, formulary tool and physician finder tool, Telkamp said. Full Story

Secure eHealth, HealthPoints join on secure patient record platform
Fort Worth, TX-based Secure eHealth LLC and Dallas-based disease management company HealthPoints Inc. are developing a secure alert and messaging platform designed to improve remote monitoring of diabetes patients. According to HealthPoints Chief Executive Officer Mark Lambright, the project will provide secure health record transmission for patients in the metropolitan Dallas area. He called the joint effort with Secure eHealth "a perfect fit." Secure eHealth is a subsidiary of wound care products maker Wound Management Technologies Inc. Full Story

WHO, North Korea launch nation's first telemedicine network
North Korea, working with the World Health Organization (WHO), has launched its first telemedicine network to provide smaller, rural hospitals with access to specialists in the capital city of Pyongyang. According to WHO Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan, WHO has provided cameras, computers and other equipment to North Korea to help the impoverished country connect a main hospital in Pyongyang with medical facilities in 10 provinces. The system is designed to allow doctors to talk to each other to provide additional services to rural patients. North Korea suffers from chronic food shortages and has relied on outside assistance to feed much of its population of 24 million. The nation also faces a shortfall of hospitals and lacks an efficient state healthcare system, Chan said. Full Story

Telemedicine and its capabilities not popular with the elderly
Telemedicine is not striking a popular chord with the nation's elderly, with less than 1 percent saying they find the technology to their liking, according to a new report by Framingham, MA-based research firm IDC. "Describing the Telemedicine Landscape in the United States" found that few consumers in general - fewer than 1 in 20 - are using technology-based programs such as videoconferencing for medical needs. Furthermore, most of those using the technology are on the younger side. Only 0.8 percent of survey respondents age 65 or older have used medical videoconferencing. While that may not sound like very positive news, in the long run, telemedicine will take off as consumers age 35 or younger begin to age, according to report co-author Irene Berlinsky. That group, she said, will be accustomed to use of technology and be much more comfortable with having their care delivered virtually. Full Story

Cost of imaging studies outpace overall costs of cancer care
The cost of imaging studies in cancer patients covered by Medicare is growing at twice the rate of the overall costs of cancer care in that group, according to a study by researchers at Duke University's Clinical Research Institute (DCRI) in Durham, N.C. The increase is generally the result of technological advances, according to study lead author Michaela Dinan. Patients are undergoing more imaging studies, and as newer, more expensive imaging technologies are used more frequently, the overall cost of imaging is going to increase, Dinan said. But although imaging costs are rising much more rapidly than the costs of overall cancer care, imaging costs comprise only 6 percent of the total Medicare medical budget for cancer patients, the study notes. The study results appear in the April 28 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association. Full Story

Advanced microscope technique could mean new red blood cell screening
An interdisciplinary team of researchers has developed a version of microscopy that can be used to screen red blood cells for malaria and other diseases, as well as gauge banked blood for suitability in transfusions. According to lead researcher Prof. Gabriel Popescu, the measurement technique, diffraction phase microscopy, uses two beams of light while other microscopes only use one. One beam goes through the specimen and one beam is used as a reference, resulting in a "down to the nanoscale" measurement of the cell, Popescu said. The technique may also allow researchers to examine the effect of chemical agents such as alcohol on red blood cell membranes, according to study co-author Catherine Best. The findings are published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Full Story

James Steele, chairman of the Montana-Wyoming Tribal Leaders Council, announced that they had received a $438,122 federal grant to connect tribal members with mental health resources across Montana, Wyoming and the U.S...Dr. Leo O'Gorman, director of Brazoria County (Texas) Health Department, announced a plan for the country's indigent healthcare patients to receive telemedicine care from the University of Texas Houston Medical School...Brent Seaton, MD, clinical neuropsychologist with Mercy Behavioral Services (Iowa) and Mark Lassise, MD, psychiatrist with the Mason City Clinic (Iowa) have initiated a telemedicine program to provide neurobehavioral and psychiatric evaluations to patients at the Britt Medical Clinic...Gary Bartkus, vice president for Enterprise sales at Alpheus Communications, announced that the company had added five major Houston, Texas healthcare facilities to its network...Pramod Gaur, PhD, Vice President TeleHealth, UnitedHealth Group, will speak at the Innovation in Global Health and Development panel discussion on May 6...Colonel Ron Poropatich , deputy director for the Telemedicine and Advanced Technology Research Center, Fort Detrick, Maryland, presented a portfolio of telemedicine research projects involving cell phones...Ali F. Krisht, MD, Director of Arkansas Neuroscience Institute at St. Vincent Infirmary Medical Center announced that they have adopted the TruVision 3D Surgical visualization system for microsurgery, which can be used for streaming video and other telemedicine applications...Please send us your news on Movers and Shakers in the field.

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