The magnetic resonance imaging process usually requires patients to lie still in the machine for up to 45 minutes. Now, that scan time could be cut to just 15 minutes, with a newly developed algorithm from MIT's Research Laboratory of Electronics.

A recent patient study from Cambridge Consultants indicates user experience and satisfaction are particularly important in the success of drug delivery and combination devices. Furthermore, investing time and effort into increasing the ease-of-use of these devices can pay off — 77% of patients...

Imagine a smartphone that could act as your counselor in stressful situations, advising you on how to measure and deal with stress in your life. Researchers at Cornell University are developing just such an application, and their work is just one example of hopefully many projects that will come out...

Researchers at Cornell are exploring the possibilities of a well-established imaging technology called multiphoton microscopy, as they work toward developing a next-generation endoscope that would minimize the need for biopsies altogether, and also allow doctors to examine surgical margins at high...

Researchers from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and University of Colorado Boulder (CU) have developed a low-power microchip that uses a combination of microfluidics and magnetic switches to trap and transport magnetic beads. This chip may have applications in biotechnology and...

The concept of a "one size fits all" medical device sounds attractive in theory, but in practice, it isn't very likely that one device can be developed to meet every patient's unique needs. This is particularly true when it comes to pediatric devices, which may not receive as much attention or funding as...

A team of researchers from the University of California, Davis has transformed everyday iPhones into medical-quality imaging and chemical detection devices. Though they are not the first to tweak the smartphone in this way, this represents a simpler and more affordable method. Using materials...

The same piezoelectric effect that ignites a gas grill could one day power sensors in the body via human respiration. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison are using polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), a piezoelectric polymer, to develop a host of biomedical devices that could monitor blood...

Tablets are taking the world by storm, as they offer both beautiful displays and ease of use. But as aesthetically pleasing as these devices may be, their greatest potential may lie in their touch-based capabilities, which are now being utilized to serve as a key tool for the blind. A team of Stanford...

The list of potential applications for ultrasound is impressive, ranging from non-invasive surgery, to pain therapy, to Alzheimer's treatment. Most recently, doctors in Glasgow, Scotland — the city in which ultrasound was pioneered as a diagnostic tool in the 1950s — started using the technology to...

At an estimated $105.8 billion, the U.S. medical device market may be the world's largest, but it could do with a healthy boost of innovation.* According to a recent White House blog post, "In trying to understand why the country’s pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device sectors seem to be...

In the months after a heart attack, certain patients are particularly vulnerable to sudden death due to irregular heart rhythms. The problem is not a shortage of information about those heart rhythms, but rather, that doctors need a better way to sift through the patterns to detect danger signals....

Researchers at Tel Aviv University were recently able to implant a robotic cerebellum into the skull of a brain-damaged rodent — and effectively restore its capacity for movement. Could robotic cerebellums benefit humans with motor control disorders, too? That's the plan, researchers say.