GE Voluson 2017 E10 OB GYN Ultrasound push the boundaries of OB/GYN ultrasound imaging.

6 weeks twin pregnancy(  Voluson e4D) 

electronic matrix 4D probe, e M6C

GE healthcare introduces the world’s first commercially available curved electronic matrix 4D probe, eM6C. The eM6C probe was totally designed keeping women’s health in mind.

Electronic 4D means there are no moving parts for beam steering. The curved electronic 4D ultrasound probe uses more than 8,000 piezoelectric crystals to electronically steer the ultrasound beam and provide clarity and speed.

E4D technology uses a 2-stage beam handling process with the first stage occurring within the beam itself. 

Electronic beam steering enables the eM6C to deliver ultrafast volume rates for real time display of motion and superb visibility of anatomical structure and functionality. The electronic in the handle generates heat, which requires heat dissipation. To dissipate the heat the eM6C probe uses active cooling allowing it to achieve greater penetration and image quality when compared to probe using passive cooling techniques. The Voluson E10 with radiance architecture provides the second stage of beam formation, where the unique system rapidly process information applying the image processing algorithms to create the final image.

The eM6C probe offers unique rendering tools for accurate clinical information in fast pace daily routine:

• Biplane imaging of structures that can be simultaneously displayed on the screen. 
• VCI-A (Volume Contrast Imaging) delivers excellent contrast resolution because of thick slice volume of the grey scale and color Doppler imaging. The ultrafast frame rate of Voluson e4D allows VCI-A to be used in standard mode for examining heart, fetal brain and extremities, especially in obese or technically difficult patients.
• eSTIC (electronic Spatio-Temporal Image Correlation) reduces the acquisition time over traditional TIC by 75% thereby enhancing fetal cardiac imaging.  The technology provides improved resolution in the B and C planes for efficiency and confidence.
•  e4D SnapShot –this provides one button access to save time when switching from Real-time 4D to acquire high resolution 3D volume or eSTIC data sets. SnapShot reduce keystrokes more than 80% when moving from Real-time 4D to eSTIC or 3D rendering. 

The Voluson E10 is GE’s newest and most advanced Voluson system to date. The Voluson E10’s Radiance System Architecture sets a new standard in imaging technology and gives the more clarity because of 4X ultrasound pathways for spectacular 2D and 3D/4D images with increased penetration, transfer the data at 10x speed providing higher resolution and very fast frame rates and it processes the information 4X times faster to streamline the workflow.

The Voluson e10 can export images to an integrated DVD/CW RW, Flash memory, or DICOM network for images, backup, and patient data.

The other automation tools rendered by Voluson E10 are:

• SonoBiometry: Performs semiautomatic biometry (BPD, HC, AC and FL) to reduce time and number of keystrokes.
• SonoNT™ (Sonography-based Nuchal Translucency) and SonoIT (Sonography-based Intracranial Translucency) – Both these tools provide semi-automatic, standardized measurements of the nuchal and intracranial translucency in the 1st trimester.  Both tools reduce the inter and intra-observer variability because of manual measurements and consistency of reading in repeated measurements.  
• SonoVCAD™heart (Sonography-based Volume Computer Aided Display heart) helps standardize image orientation of the fetal heart by providing recommended views obtained from a single volume acquisition.

Images with eM6C probe, Voluson E10

Voluson e4D technology: a combination of eM6C probe, Voluson E10 and radiance system architecture delivers extraordinary image quality to push the boundaries of Ultrasound imaging.

“The electronic 4D technology may revolutionize imaging of the fetal heart.” Said Dr. Greggory DeVore “This eM6C probe offers diagnostic possibilities for Real-Time 4D imaging that helps reduce movement artifact. The new eSTIC technology conquers the limitations of resolution affected by the sweep angle and artifacts associated with color/power Doppler ultrasound of the fetal heart.”

                                                          Voluson e4D

                                                          Voluson E10 2017 Promo Video

Is Coffee, the latest antidote for aging?

You can now stop feeling guilty about the second or third cup of coffee every morning. A new study published in Nature Medicine has shown an inverse association between caffeine intake and age related morbidity and mortality.

An inverse association exist between amount of tea and coffee consumed and long term morbidity has been suggested in many earlier studies, but the mechanism about this cause and effect relationship was not clear.

The study focused on cells of coffee drinker and non-coffee drinker and found that those who consumed high levels of caffeine tend to have lower levels of inflammation.

 Inflammasomes are protein complexes that regulate expression of interleukin-1 (IL-1) family cytokines, and are central to the regulation of a broad variety of inflammatory disease processes, A culprit responsible for many things like aging, cancer, heart disease, Type 2 DM and Alzheimer’s. 

Whole blood gene expression was measured by microarray from blood samples provided by 100 young and old people. They found that as people age they show a higher activity of Inflammasomes genes associated with the production of a circulating inflammatory protein, called interleukin-1β (IL-1-beta). Older people had significantly high levels of this inflammatory protein.

They further sub analyzed the older group, and after controlling for other confounders found out that those people who consumed at least 5 or more cup of coffee per day have the lowest level of inflammation in the body. The other groups with low caffeine intake had elevated oxidative stress, high rates of hypertension and arterial stiffness. They were also more likely to die during the 8 years of follow up of the study participants.

The researchers than isolated the protein, IL-1-beta and injected it into mice. It triggered massive systematic inflammation and arterial stiffness.

They then added IL-1-beta to human immune cells in the lab, followed by adding caffeine into the mix, too. They discovered that caffeine prevented those compounds from producing their inflammatory effects.

“The more caffeine people consumed, the more protected they were against a chronic state of inflammation,” says study author David Furman, consulting associate professor at the Institute for Immunity, Transplantation and Infection at Stanford University. “There was no boundary, apparently.”

"Most of the diseases of aging are not really diseases of aging, per se, but rather diseases of inflammation,” he further added.

The study is important because it traces novel connection between aging and chronic diseases via Inflammasomes. Inflammatory high expressors and the downward spiral towards many chronic diseases awaits further research. But, interestingly high caffeine levels were found to be associated with low expressors and protective against age related morbidity and mortality.

Further studies with large sample size are underway, till then, most of us can continue drinking coffee without feeling guilt over the second or third cup in the morning. 

Access the abstract in Nature Medicine here.

Access the Editorial published in Science Translational Medicine here.

swyMed unveils DOT TELEMEDICINE BACKPACK: world’s first truly mobile telemedicine solution for any location.

Telemedicine 

swyMed, a company based at LEXINGTON, MA, takes telemedicine to a new frontier with a plug-and-play backpack that for the first time enables real-time video telemedicine in truly mobile environments. It unveiled the backpack that gives healthcare providers on the move the ability to connect with doctors anywhere, anytime.

DOT Telemedicine Backpack

This DOT Telemedicine Backpack is lightweight, easy to use and is capable of unparalleled connectivity even in remote location. It can be quickly deployed to any location in emergency and connect physician and patient for life saving venture.

The backpack includes 4 built-in antennas to increases the range of the system, redundant dual-modem connection that provides safety in case of trouble over connectivity. It has a long battery life of 15-hours, integrated speaker/microphone, two digital scopes, and ruggedized tablet that can be read well even in direct sunlight. The tablets connect through a USB port with full HD camera which enables a reliable, exceptional-quality video telemedicine encounter.

The company will be showcasing its DOT Telemedicine Backpack at HIMSS17, taking place on February 19th-23rd in Orlando, FL.

The software used is secure and maintains privacy and provides unparalleled interoperability with existing EMRs, PACs, and certified third-party diagnostic equipment.

The ability of the physician to see patient over the DOT system and start treatment before the patient arise at the ER, can save valuable time and save lives. It can be very useful in transporting critically ill patients or providing consultations to chronic ill, old patients who have restricted mobility.

"From paramedicine care providers who are reducing readmissions via home visits to EMTs in ambulances who connect with neurologists for telestroke consults while on the move, innovative hospitals and healthcare systems count on us to provide a consistent, high-quality connection to a physician, saving not only time and money, but lives as well," said Stefano Migliorisi, CEO of swyMed.