Image Credit: St. Jude Medical
Today Boston Scientific Corporation announced financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2011. Summarizing the AIMD data:
Click here for the news release.
Remon Medical Technologies, Ltd. was founded in 1997 in Caesarea, Israel to develop implantable, wireless pressure sensors.
Remon developed an implantable hemodynamic monitor, which allowed on-demand, non-invasive, leadless self-monitoring of pulmonary artery pressure by the patient at home. ImPressure devices were placed in the pulmonary artery, and transmitted pressure readings to a hand-held monitor. It was hoped that the system would provide early warning of the need for treatment, avoiding hospitalization and deterioration in the patient’s condition. Continue reading
Image Credit: Purdue University
A group of researchers at Purdue University led by Prof. Babak Ziaie developed a vibrating cantilever that is excited by an external bass source from 200-500 Hz. The excitation causes the cantilever to vibrate, generating electricity and storing a charge in a capacitor.
Although playing tones within a certain frequency range would be ideal, the group concentrated on the use of music as an excitation source. According to the researchers, “a plain tone is a very annoying sound. We thought it would be novel and also more aesthetically pleasing to use music.” Continue reading
Sensors for Medicine and Science, Inc. (SMSI) of Germantown, MD was founded in 1997 to develop chemical sensing technologies based on fluorescence sensing.
SMSI® is now developing an implantable glucose sensor that is designed to automatically measure interstitial glucose every few minutes. The sensor implant communicates wirelessly with a small external reader, allowing it to track the rate of change of glucose levels and warn the user of impending hypo- or hyperglycemia. According to SMSI, the target operational life of the sensor implant will be 6-12 months, after which it would be replaced. Continue reading
Today we received the first two copies of the book that I wrote with my 16-year-old daughter Shanni! It is a do-it-yourself book on Experimental Quantum Physics, and was published by John Wiley & Sons.
From the back cover:
“Build an intuitive understanding of the principles behind quantum mechanics through practical construction and replication of original experiments.
With easy-to-acquire, low-cost materials and basic knowledge of algebra and trigonometry, Exploring Quantum Physics through Hands-on Projects takes readers step by step through the process of re-creating scientific experiments that played an essential role in the creation and development of quantum mechanics.
Presented in near chronological order—from discoveries of the early twentieth century to new material on entanglement—this book includes question- and experiment-filled chapters on:
From simple measurements of Planck’s constant to testing violations of Bell’s inequalities using entangled photons, Exploring Quantum Physics through Hands-on Projects not only immerses readers in the process of quantum mechanics, it gives them insight into the history of the field—how the theories and discoveries apply to our world not only today . . . but also tomorrow.
By immersing readers in groundbreaking experiments that can be performed at home, school, or in the lab, this first-ever, hands-on book successfully demystifies the world of quantum physics for all who seek to explore it—from science enthusiasts and undergrad physics students to practicing physicists and engineers.”
For more information, please visit our d.i.y. Modern/Quantum Physics projects website at: www.diyPhysics.com
St. Jude Medical today reported sales and net earnings for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2011. From the press release:
“Cardiac Rhythm Management
Total CRM sales, which include implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) and pacemaker products, were$728 million for the fourth quarter of 2011, a 4 percent decrease compared to the fourth quarter of 2010. After adjusting for the impact of foreign currency, total CRM sales decreased 6 percent. Total CRM product sales for the full-year 2011 were $3.034 billion, essentially equal to 2010. On a currency neutral basis, total CRM sales declined 3 percent from the prior year. Continue reading
Image Credit: Biophan
Today I was going through some papers and found a 2005 brochure for Biophan’s implantable biothermal source – a 3 mm-thick power source for implantable devices capable of generating electricity from body heat. This power source was being developed by Biophan in collaboration with the NASA Ames Research Center for Nanotechnology.
The device is covered by U.S. Patent No. 6,640,137, “Biothermal power source for implantable devices” to Stuart G. MacDonald. It is a power source based on the Seebeck Effect, which allows electrical energy to be generated by heat crossing and array of n and p junctions of a specialized semiconductor. Biophan and NASA developed materials that matched the size, shape and number of semiconductor junctions to develop sufficient energy to power a pacemaker despite the very slight temperature difference between the body and the subcutaneous layer. Continue reading
This is a picture of the first pacemaker to be implanted in a human patient. It was developed by Dr. Rune Elmqvist (1906–1996), a physician by training, but working for the Swedish company Elema-Schonander as an engineer. Dr. Elmqvist developed the device in cooperation of Åke Senning, senior physician and cardiac surgeon at the Karolinska University Hospital in Solna, Sweden. Continue reading
Data Block implantable percutaneous electrical connector produced by Intermedics for in-house animal studies. Device accommodated two IS-1 bipolar leads and had an IROX-coated "can" electrode.
The development of medical devices, drugs, and treatments depends on accurately retrieving clinical data from implanted animals. Implantable data collecting and sensing devices provide one way to retrieve these data. These device often include sensors or electrodes which must be implanted within the subject in order to provide clinicians with access to the sensed information.
Retrieving data from implanted sensors poses a potential problem since data frequently must be retrieved on numerous different occasions and over an extended period of time. If surgery is required each time data is retrieved, the subject may be overly exposed to stress, trauma, or risk of infection. In order to develop and test cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators, for example, clinicians need to monitor electrical activity of the subject’s heart. One way to monitor this activity is to surgically implant one end of a lead to the heart. The other end of the lead may be left subcutaneously (i.e., under the skin) or transcutaneously (i.e., through the skin). In the former instance, access to the electrode may require an invasive procedure, such as surgery. In the latter instance, prolonged and chronic exposure of the electrode through the skin may cause discomfort, lead to infection, or cause damaging stress on the electrode. Continue reading
Image Credit: MicroCHIPS
MicroCHIPS was founded in 1999 as an MIT spinoff to develop implantable sensors and drug-delivery devices.
MicroCHIPS’ drug-delivery technology is based on proprietary reservoir arrays that are used to store potent drugs within the body for long periods of time. Individual device reservoirs can be opened on demand or on a predetermined schedule to precisely control drug release or sensor activation. Continue reading
Neuromed TIME IPG on loan from Daniel Villamil's collection.
Neuromed was formed in 1980 with an initial capitalization of $150,000 by Bill Borkan through money obtained when Borkan`s parents took out a second mortgage on their home. Borkan’s desire to help his sister, Jennie, a cerebral palsy patient, got him started in neurostimulation technology. In the next few years, Neuromed developed and marketed a RF-powered implantable spinal cord stimulator, along with its external radio frequency transmitter.
Throughout the 1980s, development of more advanced devices was ongoing at Neuromed. My friend Daniel Villamil from CCC Medical has in his collection one of these more modern units, which he lent to me for photographing. The “Total Implantable Multichannel Electronics” (TIME) spinal cord stimulator shown in this picture went into clinical trials around 1988. This was a device that was internally powered by its own battery. However, it could also be RF-powered after the eventual battery failure. Continue reading
This is a hack that combines three of my favorite passions: pacemakers, photography, and coffee!
I took this photograph by feeding the output of an infrared barrier to the atrium input of an old DDD pacemaker, setting an appropriate AV delay, and using the ventricular output to trigger a camera flash (via a optoisolator). In a darkened room, I opened my camera’s shutter for 2 seconds. I then let one drop of milk fall through the infrared barrier, starting the AV delay in VAT mode. The flash then fires as the drop enters the coffee in the cup, freezing the action. Continue reading
In 2005, St. Jude Medical purchased Advanced Neuromodulation Systems (ANS) in Plano, Texas. ANS had developed a number of spinal cord stimulation IPGs that were either externally powered via inductive link, internally powered by a primary cell, or internally powered by a transcutaneously rechargeable lithium-ion cell.
Today, the most popular St. Jude spinal cord stimulators are the rechargeable 42 cc Eon and 18 cc Eon mini neurostimulators.
They are constant-current devices with a rated longevity of 10 years. Current through up to 16 electrodes is programmable between 0-25.5 mA with a pulse width of 50-500 µs and a frequency between 2-1200 Hz. Continue reading
In 1973, former Medtronic sales representative Albert Beutel founded Intermedics in Freeport, TX. The first product was a small, mercury-cell-powered pacemaker. In 1974 Intermedics introduced a lithium-powered version, and in 1976 it introduced InterLith which was hermetically sealed, and weighed just 65 grams. At the time, InterLith’s size was a breakthrough, and became a very popular device, solidifying Intermedics’ position in the industry.