Philips receives FDA clearance to market MicroDose SI Mammography System

Philips has announced FDA clearance of its MicroDose SI full-field digital mammography (FFDM) system. In addition to the capabilities of the original MicroDose approved in 2011, the company touts the SI model’s ability to do single-shot spectroscopy, yet that particular feature is not yet available in the U.S.

The MicroDose device use X-ray photon-counting detectors to perform breast tissue imaging at a considerably lower dose compared to traditional mammography. It is hoped the technology will improve the ability of radiologists to spot tumors within dense breast tissue.


From Philips:

As in existing Philips MicroDose systems, MicroDose SI uses unique digital photon-counting technology, which represents a paradigm shift in mammography by enabling clinicians to conduct exams using low radiation dose without compromising image quality. Philips has further advanced this unique technology with Single-Shot Spectral Imaging, which is built upon the fact that breast density is subject to different tissue types and materials that absorb X-rays at various energies. The technology powering the MicroDose SI uses this fundamental behavior of X-rays, allowing clinicians to see more than just a shadow in mammogram images by separating high and low energy X-ray within one single exposure.

Key advantages of MicroDose SI include:

• High image quality at low X-ray dose (18 to 50 percent lower radiation dose than other digital mammography systems with an average dose reduction of 40 percent)

• Short exam time – less than 5 minutes including image acquisition

• Patient comfort with anatomically curved and warmed breast support

• Ready for future Single-Shot Spectral Imaging applications

 via
http://www.medgadget.com/

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History of Medicine : The Stethoscope

In the early 1800s, doctors began to listen to patients' chests to diagnose diseases of the heart and lungs. At first, the physician put his ear to the patient's chest. One day when examining a young lady under the watchful eye of her family, René Laënnec was embarrassed to place his head right next to her breast. Instead, he listened through a rolled up a piece of paper, and found he could hear much more clearly than without it--thus the stethoscope was invented.

Laënnec, A l'Hopital Necker, Ausculte Un Phtisique (Laënnec, at the Hopital Necker, Examining a Consumptive Patient by Auscultation)
Théobald Chartran (1849­-1907)


Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ren%C3%A9_Laennec

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Dr. William Li: Can we eat to starve Cancer ?

Dr. William Li heads the Angiogenesis Foundation, a nonprofit that is re-conceptualizing global disease fighting,  presents a new way to think about treating cancer and other diseases: anti-angiogenesis, preventing the growth of blood vessels that feed a tumor. The crucial first (and best) step: Eating cancer-fighting foods that cut off the supply lines and beat cancer at its own game.

Why you should listen to him:
Many of society’s most devastating diseases -- cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and Alzheimer’s, to name a few -- share a common denominator: faulty Angiogenesis, the body’s growth of new capillary blood vessels. Given excessive or insufficient blood vessel growth, serious health issues arise. While researching under Harvard surgeon Judah Folkman, who pioneered the study of angiogenesis, Li learned how angiogenesis-based medicine helps patients overcome numerous diseases by restoring the balance of blood-vessel growth.

Li co-founded the Angiogenesis Foundation in 1994. The foundation’s Project ENABLE -- a global system that integrates patients, medical experts and healthcare professionals -- democratizes the spread and implementation of knowledge about angiogenesis-based medicines, diet and lifestyle. Some 40,000 physicians have been educated on new treatments, ranging from cancer care to wound care, by the foundation’s faculty of medical experts, and they are bringing new, lifesaving and disease-preventing techniques to people around the world.

"Imagine that one medical advancement held the promise to conquer cancer, perhaps within your lifetime … the potential to also end more than 70 of life's most threatening conditions, affecting one billion people worldwide. This is the promise of angiogenesis, the first medical revolution of the 21st century." - Dr. William Li

Related articles

• Anti-Angiogenic Drugs May Be Effective Against New Subtype Of Ovarian Cancer (medicalnewstoday.com)
• http://www.angio.org/

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How to Turn your iPhone into a Microscope

       CellScope is a UC Berkeley project designed to enable microscopic image captures from a cell phone’s camera. At first it might sound like a pointlessly geeky project to do microscopy on a cell phone, but in fact it has important applications for mobile health services in remote areas. In some areas of sub-Saharan Africa and other developing areas of the world, access to health care of any kind is scarce, and it often falls upon poorly-equipped doctors or volunteers to take up the slack.

Since health care equipment is generally expensive to begin with, outfitting even a low-power microscope with a wireless transmitter capable of communicating with doctors at a remote location could easily run into the thousands of dollars. Not only that, but the equipment itself would likely be bulky, temperamental, and easily damaged. That's where CellScope comes in. Via an attachment, CellScope can turn a standard cell phone camera into a 5x to 50x microscope, essentially creating a miniaturized blood lab that can capture images and transmit them far more cheaply than traditional equipment.
The iPhone 4 pictured above  isn't the first mobile phone to be hooked into the CellScope rig, but with its high-quality camera and extensive photo sharing abilities, it might end up being the best mobile device for the job. Plus, viewing microscopic images on a Retina Display sounds like a great alternative to peering into one of those microscope eyepieces. This obviously won't replace traditional setups in a fully-equipped laboratory, but for the kind of remote and rural applications that CellScope covers, it sounds like an ideal solution.

Smartphone vs. Traditional Microscope: Plant Matter

These are stained samples of pollen (left images) and plant stems (right two images). Top row: commercial microscope. Bottom row: cell phone microscope

Smartphone vs. Traditional Microscope: Polarized Light

                    These are images of a sugar crystal taken through polarized light filters. Left: 
                                 traditional microscope. Right: cell phone microscope


The CellScope clips easily to a cell phone via a modified belt clip. Illumination is provided by a ring of low-cost, low-power, high-brightness white LEDs, powered by a battery attached to the device. It can be angled to fully illuminate a sample at the focal point.
Originally the idea for the CellScope began with Daniel Fletcher, a professor of bioengineering at Berkeley, who challenged his students to develop a camera phone microscope. The team is working now on another version of the CellScope to be used in more developed countries. With the CellScope, for example, cancer patients may be able to perform critical tasks, such as blood cell counts, at home and send in the data, avoiding the need to make stressful trips to hospital.



http://cellscope.berkeley.edu/
http://appadvice.com/appnn/2010/09/turn-iphone-coolest-microscope-10
http://www.earthtimes.org/scitech/app-for-that-turn-iphone-medical-imager/1456/

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Harmful Interactions: Mixing Alcohol with Medicines

You’ve probably seen this warning on medicines you’ve taken. The danger is real. Mixing alcohol with certain medications can cause nausea and vomiting, headaches, drowsiness, fainting, or loss of coordination.

It also can put you at risk for internal bleeding, heart problems, and difficulties in breathing. In addition to these dangers, alcohol can make a medication less effective or even useless, or it may make the medication harmful or toxic to your body.

Some medicines that you might never have suspected can react with alcohol, including many medications which can be purchased “over-the-counter”—that is, without a prescription. Even some herbal remedies can have harmful effects when combined with alcohol.

This pamphlet lists medications that can cause harm when taken with alcohol and describes the effects that can result. The list gives the brand name by which each medicine is commonly known (for example, Benadryl®) and its generic name or active ingredient (in Benadryl®, this is diphenhydramine). The list presented here does not include all the medicines that may interact harmfully with alcohol. Most important, the list does not include all the ingredients in every medication.

Medications are safe and effective when used appropriately. Your pharmacist or other health care provider can help you determine which medications interact harmfully with alcohol.

Did You Know…

Mixing alcohol and medicines can be harmful. Alcohol, like some medicines, can make you sleepy, drowsy, or lightheaded. Drinking alcohol while taking medicines can intensify these effects. You may have trouble concentrating or performing mechanical skills. Small amounts of alcohol can make it dangerous to drive, and when you mix alcohol with certain medicines you put yourself at even greater risk. Combining alcohol with some medicines can lead to falls and serious injuries, especially among older people.

Medicines may have many ingredients

Some medications—including many popular painkillers and cough, cold, and allergy remedies—contain more than one ingredient that can react with alcohol. Read the label on the medication bottle to find out exactly what ingredients a medicine contains. Ask your pharmacist if you have any questions about how alcohol might interact with a drug you are taking.

Some medicines contain alcohol

Certain medicines contain up to 10 percent alcohol. Cough syrup and laxatives may have some of the highest alcohol concentrations.

Alcohol affects women differently

Women, in general, have a higher risk for problems than men. When a woman drinks, the alcohol in her bloodstream typically reaches a higher level than a man’s even if both are drinking the same amount. This is because women’s bodies generally have less water than men’s bodies. Because alcohol mixes with body water, a given amount of alcohol is more concentrated in a woman’s body than in a man’s. As a result, women are more susceptible to alcohol-related damage to organs such as the liver.

Older people face greater risk

Older people are at particularly high risk for harmful alcohol– medication interactions. Aging slows the body’s ability to break down alcohol, so alcohol remains in a person’s system longer. Older people also are more likely to take a medication that interacts with alcohol—in fact, they often need to take more than one of these medications.

Timing is important

Alcohol and medicines can interact harmfully even if they are not taken at the same time.

Remember…

Mixing alcohol and medicines puts you at risk for dangerous reactions. Protect yourself by avoiding alcohol if you are taking a medication and don’t know its effect. To learn more about a medicine and whether it will interact with alcohol, talk to your pharmacist or other health care provider.

Symptom/Disorders	Medication (Brand name)	Medication (Generic name)	Some possible reactions with alcohol
Allergies/Colds/Flu	• Alavert®	Loratadine	Drowsiness, dizziness; increased risk for overdose
	• Allegra®, Allegra-D®	Fexofenadin
	• Benadryl®	Diphenhydramine
	• Clarinex®	Desloratadine
	• Claritin®, Claritin-D®	Loratadine
	• Dimetapp® Cold & Allergy	Brompheniramine
	• Sudafed® Sinus & Allergy	Chlorpheniramine
	• Triaminic® Cold & Allergy	Chlorpheniramine
	• Tylenol® Allergy Sinus	Chlorpheniramine
	• Tylenol® Cold & Flu	Chlorpheniramine
	• Zyrtec®	Cetirizine
Angina (chest pain), coronary heart disease	• Isordil®	Isosorbide	Rapid heartbeat, sudden changes in blood pressure, dizziness, fainting
		Nitroglycerin
Anxiety and epilepsy	• Ativan®	Lorazepam	Drowsiness, dizziness; increased risk for overdose; slowed or difficulty breathing; impaired motor control; unusual behavior; and memory problems
	• Klonopin®	Clonazepam
	• Librium®	Chlordiazepoxide
	• Paxil®	Paroxetine
	• Valium®	Diazepam
	• Xanax®	Alprazolam
	• Herbal preparations (Kava Kava)		Liver damage, drowsiness
Arthritis	• Celebrex®	Celecoxib	Ulcers, stomach bleeding, liver problems
	• Naprosyn®	Naproxen
	• Voltaren®	Diclofenac
Blood clots	• Coumadin®	Warfarin	Occasional drinking may lead to internal bleeding; heavier drinking also may cause bleeding or may have the opposite effect, resulting in possible blood clots, strokes, or heart attacks
Cough	• Delsym®, Robitussin Cough®	Dextromethorpan	Drowsiness, dizziness; increased risk for overdose
	• Robitussin A–C®	Guaifenesin + codeine
Depression	• Anafranil®	Clomipramine	Drowsiness, dizziness; increased risk for overdose; increased feelings of depression or hopelessness in adolescents (suicide)
	• Celexa®	Citalopram
	• Desyrel®	Trazodone
	• Effexor®	Venlafaxine
	• Elavil®	Amitriptyline
	• Lexapro®	Escitalopram
	• Luvox®	Fluvoxamine
	• Norpramin®	Desipramine
	• Paxil®	Paroxetine
	• Prozac®	Fluoxetine
	• Serzone®	Nefazodone
	• Wellbutrin®	Bupropion
	• Zoloft®	Sertraline
	• Herbal preparations (St. John’s Wort)
Diabetes	• Glucophage®	Metformin	Abnormally low blood sugar levels, flushing reaction (nausea, vomiting, headache, rapid heartbeat, sudden changes in blood pressure)
	• Micronase®	Glyburide
	• Orinase®	Tolbutamide
Enlarged prostate	• Cardura®	Doxazosin	Dizziness, light headedness, fainting
	• Flomax®	Tamsulosin
	• Hytrin®	Terazosin
	• Minipress®	Prazosin
Heartburn, indigestion, sour stomach	• Axid®	Nizatidine	Rapid heartbeat, sudden changes in blood pressure (metoclopramide); increased alcohol effect
	• Reglan®	Metoclopramide
	• Tagamet®	Cimetidine
	• Zantac®	Ranitidine
High blood pressure	• Accupril®	Quinapril	Dizziness, fainting, drowsiness; heart problems such as changes in the heart’s regular heartbeat (arrhythmia)
	• Capozide®	Hydrochlorothiazide
	• Cardura®	Doxazosin
	• Catapres®	Clonidine
	• Cozaar®	Losartan
	• Hytrin®	Terazosin
	• Lopressor® HCT	Hydrochlorothiazide
	• Lotensin®	Benzapril
	• Minipress®	Prazosin
	• Vaseretic®	Enalapril
High cholesterol	• Advicor®	Lovastatin + Niacin	Liver damage (all medications); increased flushing and itching (niacin), increased stomach bleeding (pravastatin + aspirin)
	• Altocor®	Lovastatin
	• Crestor®	Rosuvastatin
	• Lipitor®	Atorvastatin
	• Mevacor®	Lovastatin
	• Niaspan®	Niacin
	• Pravachol®	Pravastatin
	• Pravigard™	Pravastatin + Aspirin
	• Vytorin™	Ezetimibe + Simvastatin
	• Zocor®	Simvastatin
Infections	• Acrodantin®	Nitrofurantoin	Fast heartbeat, sudden changes in blood pressure; stomach pain, upset stomach, vomiting, headache, or flushing or redness of the face; liver damage (isoniazid, ketokonazole)
	• Flagyl®	Metronidazole
	• Grisactin®	Griseofulvin
	• Nizoral®	Ketokonazole
	• Nydrazid®	Isoniazid
	• Seromycin®	Cycloserine
	• Tindamax®	Tinidazole
Muscle pain	• Flexeril®	Cyclobenzaprine	Drowsiness, dizziness; increased risk of seizures; increased risk for overdose; slowed or difficulty breathing; impaired motor control; unusual behavior; memory problems
	• Soma®	Carisoprodol
Nausea, motion sickness	• Antivert®	Meclizine	Drowsiness, dizziness; increased risk for overdose
	• Atarax®	Hydroxyzine
	• Dramamine®	Dimenhydrinate
	• Phenergan®	Promethazine
Pain (such as headache, muscle ache, minor arthritis pain), fever, inflammation	• Advil®	Ibuprofen	Stomach upset, bleeding and ulcers; liver damage (acetaminophen); rapid heartbeat
	• Aleve®	Naproxen
	• Excedrin®	Aspirin, Acetaminophen
	• Motrin®	Ibuprofen
	• Tylenol®	Acetaminophen
Seizures	• Dilantin®	Phenytoin	Drowsiness, dizziness; increased risk of seizures
	• Klonopin®	Clonazepam Phenobarbital
Severe pain from injury, postsurgical care, oral surgery, migraines	• Darvocet–N®	Propoxyphene	Drowsiness, dizziness; increased risk for overdose; slowed or difficulty breathing; impaired motor control; unusual behavior; memory problems
	• Demerol®	Merepidine
	• Fiorinal® with codeine	Butalbital + codeine
	• Percocet®	Oxycodone
	• Vicodin®	Hydrocodone
Sleep problems	• Ambien®	Zolpidem	Drowsiness, sleepiness, dizziness; slowed or difficulty breathing; impaired motor control; unusual behavior; memory problems
	• Lunesta™	Eszopiclone
	• Prosom™	Estazolam
	• Restoril®	Temazepam
	• Sominex®	Diphenhydramine
	• Unisom®	Doxylamine
	• Herbal preparations (chamomile, valerian, lavender)		Increased drowsiness

via  @http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/Medicine/medicine.htm

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#Medical Case: 7-year old with Limbs Growing Out of his Chest

           A 7-year-old boy Deepak Kumar Paswaan, who lives in Buxar, Bihar, India, was born with extra arms, legs and buttocks of a parasitic twin protruding from his chest, which looks similar to the Indian man’s extra body.

• This case is similar to how conjoined twins are formed, except there is a malformation of one of those twins.As a result, the twin never fully develops and has caused the boy to live with extra arms and legs.The worst part is, the legs are growing at the same rate as the boy, adding to the weight the boy must carry.
  

• As “usual,” he was worshipped as an incarnation of Lakshmi, the multi-limbed Hindu goddess of wealth and prosperity but there are also people who cast stones to him to driveout the “demon” in his body. 

When Deepak was born with the parasitic twin growing out of his abdomen the doctors in the village warned he wouldn’t have lived for more than a few days. However little Deepak fought through all the odds and survived as a healthy child though he was much behind his peers and led a socially restricted life. The contrasting ways in which he led is life is best exemplified by the fact that Deepak was treated as a religious icon and was worshipped by a set of villagers as God, while a few took him as a devil born to the village that would cast bad luck and attacked him with stones which left the little boy petrified and restricted his movement out of his home, mingling with his peers or even going to school with his brothers.

• “It is heart wrenching for a parent to see his child suffer like this, though many people come from distant villages to worship him, offer money, sweets, flowers etc but I never had any intention of earning money through my child. I wanted to see my son like any other normal child being accepted by the society and so I decided to go for the surgery and get rid of the abnormal part of his body” says Viresh Paswan, Deepak’s father a construction worker at Bhelhari, a village 125 kilometers away from Patna.

Dr. Ramcharan Thiagarajan the lead surgeon of Deepak’s case felt that  the boy and the parasitic twin shared the chest wall and the abdomen. “I was concerned that there may be sharing of the thoracic organs such as heart or lungs in addition to the abdominal organs“. We were confident about providing care to this boy as we have an outstanding cardiac and liver unit at Fortis Hospitals Bangalore. The MRI scans which were sent to us showed that the parasitic twin was protruding from his lower chest and abdomen and was fused to Deepak with sharing of liver, intestine and possibly other structures. On clinical examination, the parasite was attached to the lower part of the chest and the most of the upper abdomen and it looked as if he was carrying a baby. It had two legs, a pelvis, abdomen and two poorly formed upper arms.

• Once Deepak was brought into the hospital a CT scan was performed and it revealed that the sharing of the intestine, had vascular anomalies, a huge hernia and possible involvement of the liver. After an intensive discussion amongst the team of specialists which comprised of the liver and digestive surgical team, radiologist, anesthesiologist, neonatologist and child psychologist they concluded that the parasite can be safely removed without Deepak compromising his life. However there is always a possibility of complication after surgery either from excessive bleeding or from sharing of organs. The involvement of a neonatologist and a child psychologist was important because the physical disability affected Deepak’s social behavior; he seemed to have suffered from neurological imbalance and was mal nourished to a large extent as the parasite was taking most of the nutrition from his body.

• According to Dr. Murali Chakravarthy, Chief Anesthesiologist “Anesthetizing parasitic twins is always a challenge. Deepak was no exception. We were not worried about gaining control of blood pressure fluctuations; because continuous monitoring of the hemodynamic parameters began from the word go. Grossly hypertrophied artery from the chest was supplying the parasitic twin. We had concerns about the management of the subsequent clamp of this while separating the twin. Thanks to the preparations, we could handle them without causing any danger to Deepak. Pain relief after a major surgery requiring a long surgical incision was yet another challenge, which was adequately taken care by insertion of the thoracic epidural catheter. Overall the job was well planned and executed. A beaming Deepak is a testimony to that.

“We were well prepared and started the surgery with an incision on the parasite to save skin and muscle to use for Deepak at the time of closure. We went into the parasites body and found that there were loops of intestine, piece of urinary bladder densely adhered to Deepak’s liver which was enlarged and also creating a huge hernia coming out through Deepak’s abdominal wall little bit below the fusion. The parasitic content was meticulous dissected off from liver and excised without compromising Deepak’s internal organs. The skin, muscle and the fascia (fused muscle providing strength) of the parasite was used to reconstruct Deepak’s abdominal wall” explained Dr. Ramcharan Thiagarajan. “What was originally seen as a sharing of the liver was found to an enlarged liver Deepak’s recovery has been quite fast, and he was moved out of the PICU on the first post op day and he started walking on his own on the 2nd post op day. He will be able to lead a normal life with pride and dignity like any other child without any physical difficulty in further”.

• An emotionally charged Indu, Deepak’s mother says “I was initially not sure with the decision of Deepak’s surgery and was upset with my husband as I thought it would put my son’s life at risk. Though I wanted Deepak to have a normal life but as a mother my heart wept constantly with the fear of losing him in the process as I was scared by the villagers saying no surgery in this world can correct Deepak’s condition. But now when I see him smiling and playing with our 3 year old daughter just after two days of the surgery, my faith has strengthened and I believe that medical science has progressed so much that anything is possible if there is enough conviction”.

• “I was confident that my child will fight a way out of this however an unknown fear was always there. I am eagerly waiting to go back to our village and show to all those people who considered my child as a devil, that my son is one of the luckiest and the bravest child in our village. I want to give him a good life and education so that he doesn’t remain a prey to society’s superstitious thoughts. The hospital and doctors have not only given my child a new life, they have restored his dignity” said Viresh.

Dr. Ramcharan added “Deepak has recovered very well and our entire team of doctors feels highly gratified that we have helped this child get back to a normal life just like any other boy of his age. It is sad that he could have been fixed long time back and not go through physical and emotional trauma all these years. He is also lucky that this one surgery will completely fix him and he would not require any more surgery contrary to other such where these children go through multiple remedial procedures.”

• “At Fortis Hospitals our commitment in contributing towards clinical procedures which are truly life changing has always reflected in all our medical marvels. To us this case reflects the contribution that modern medicine can make in healing lives. Through our clinical expertise and our passion to be relevant to society we are glad to have given this little child from Bihar a new lease of life and free him of the social stigma. Deepak is a real hero for us who has fought the social and medical battle, he has won over the hearts of all the employees at hospital with his spark and brilliance. We wish him a good life and a great future ahead” said Mr. Vishal Bali, Chief Executive Officer, Fortis Hospitals.

Source:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk
http://www.telegraph.co.uk

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Heterochromic Iris

Heterochromia= is the presence of different colored eyes in the same person. 

Heterochromia is uncommon in humans, but quite common in dogs (such as Dalmatians and Australian sheep dogs), cats, and horses.

Causes:Most cases of heterochromia are hereditary, caused by a disease or syndrome, or due to an injury. Sometimes one eye may change color following certain diseases or injuries.
Specific causes of eye color changes include:

• Bleeding (hemorrhage)
• Familial heterochromia
• Foreign object in the eye
• Glaucoma, or some medications used to treat it
• Injury
• Mild inflammation affecting only one eye
• Neurofibromatosis
• Waardenberg syndrome

When to Contact a Medical Professional

Consult your health care provider if you notice new changes in the color of one eye, or two differently colored eyes in your infant. A thorough eye examination is needed to be sure this isn't a symptom of a medical problem.
Some conditions and syndromes associated with heterochromia, such as pigmentary glaucoma, can only be detected by a thorough eye exam.

What to Expect at Your Office Visit

Your health care provider may ask the following questions to help evaluate the cause:

• Did you notice the two different eye colors when the child was born, shortly after the birth, or recently?
• Are any other symptoms present?

An infant with heterochromia should be examined by both a pediatrician and an ophthalmologist for other possible problems.
A complete eye examination can rule out most causes of heterochromia. If there doesn't seem to be an underlying disorder, no further testing may be necessary. If another disorder is suspected, diagnostic tests, such as blood tests or chromosome studies, may be done to confirm the diagnosis.

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