Categories
Cardiovascular
Diagnostics
Endocrinology
Health Insurance
Medical Devices
Mental Health
Nutrition
Oncology
Public Health
Sexual Health
Popular Articles

7 Out Of 10 Women Too Embarrassed To Discuss Vaginal Dryness And Pain With Their Physician
The majority of post-menopausal women are uncomfortable talking about vaginal dryness and pain and are reluctant to seek medical help, according to results from a new international survey presented today at the European Congress on Menopause in London. Results from the survey show that over a third (39 percent) of post-menopausal women experience these symptoms of vaginal atrophy and 40 percent of women who have recently experienced vaginal dryness and pain said it interferes with their sex life, yet seven out of ten would not discuss the problem with their physician (only 30 percent of women would consider talking to a gynaecologist, and only 29 percent would consider talking to a GP).

Obstructive Sleep Apnea Prevalent In Nonobese Patients
There is a high probability of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in non-obese, middle-aged patients, according to a research abstract presented at SLEEP 2009, the 23rd Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies.
News of the day
Synchronized Swimming Of Algae May Have Significant Implications For Human Health And Disease
Using high-speed cinematography, scientists at Cambridge University have discovered that individual algal cells can regulate the beating of their flagella in and out of synchrony in a manner that controls their swimming trajectories. Their research was published on the 24th July in the journal Science.
Oncology

BrainGate2: Brain-Computer Interface Begins New Clinical Trial For Paralysis

Scientists at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have initiated the BrainGate2 pilot clinical trial to expand restorative neurotechnology research for some patients with paralysis. This trial expands on previous research that explores methods that may help paralyzed patients control assistive technologies. The research, to be conducted jointly by physician researchers at MGH and neuroscientists and engineers at Brown University, has received approval from the hospital"s Institutional Review Board (IRB) to begin recruiting patients. John Donoghue, PhD, of Brown and the Providence VA Medical Center, and Leigh Hochberg, MD, PhD, of MGH, Brown, the VA and Harvard Medical School are leading this research to evaluate how people with spinal cord injury, brainstem stroke, muscular dystrophy, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or limb loss may be able to use brain signals to control assistive devices. "We are working to develop and test technologies that we hope will help patients with devastating illnesses that limit their ability to move or to speak," says Hochberg, a vascular and critical care neurologist at MGH, Brigham and Women"s Hospital and Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital. "The goal of our research is to harness the brain signals that ordinarily accompany movement and to translate those signals into actions on a computer, like moving a cursor on the screen, or the movement of a robotic or prosthetic limb." Donoghue said the new trial is taking place at a time of great promise for neurotechnology research. "We are entering a new age of neurotechnology," Donoghue says. "Our fundamental understanding of the nervous system, combined with advances in engineering may help people with brain and spinal cord injuries and diseases." A previous clinical trial run by an outside company, Cyberkinetics, Inc., together with researchers at MGH and Brown, demonstrated that the neural signals associated with the intent to move a limb can be "decoded" by a computer in real-time and used to operate external devices. This device, called the BrainGate Neural Interface System, involved a sensor placed on a part of a study participant"s brain called the motor cortex. During research sessions, a computer was connected to the sensor through a port on the participant"s head, allowing participants to control a computer cursor by simply thinking about the movement of their own paralyzed hand. "We learned an incredible amount with the assistance of the first participants in the BrainGate trial, not only about how the motor cortex continues to work after paralyzing illness or injury, but also about how to harness these powerful intracortical signals for controlling computers and other assistive devices," Hochberg says. For financial reasons, Cyberkinetics stopped funding the trial and withdrew itself from the research. The promising clinical trial continues, now based at Mass. General. A new academically-based Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) application, BrainGate2, was developed in 2008 to follow-up on research previously published in peer reviewed journals. The BrainGate2 pilot clinical trials will be directed by Dr. Hochberg at MGH with close collaboration with researchers at Brown University and the Providence VA Medical Center. BrainGate2 will expand on previous research, honing the hardware and software that decode the brain signals that are causing the cursor to move on a screen. This IDE is part of a larger research effort, the ultimate goals of which include "turning thought into action": developing point and click capabilities on a computer screen, controlling a prosthetic limb and a robotic arm, controlling functional electrical stimulation (FES) of nerves disconnected from the brain due to paralysis, and further expanding the neuroscience underlying the field of intracortical neurotechnology. The research is focused not only on the ability to operate a computer, but also to assist people with ALS, spinal cord injury and stroke to control over their environment. "Through ongoing development and testing, it is hoped that these technologies will eventually help to improve the communication, mobility and independence of people with severe paralysis," says Dr. Hochberg. People with these types of paralysis have at least two characteristics in common: a brain that wants to direct movement and a body that fails to respond accordingly. Beyond the current clinical trial, the goal of the BrainGate research effort is to someday be able to provide a new pathway for brain signals to control external devices such as computers, or even one"s own limbs that had been "disconnected" from the brain due to paralysis. Notes: The research is funded entirely by federal (NIH, VA) and philanthropic s. Additional information about BrainGate2 can be accessed at http://www.braingate2.org. This research is based upon work supported in part by the Office of Research and Development, Rehabilitation R&D Service, Department of Veterans Affairs. Jennifer Gundersen Massachusetts General Hospital


Add your comment:
Name:
Site address: http://
Your message:
Enter today\\\\'s date, 2 digits
(spam protection):

© Copyright 2009