Low cost antenatal ultrasound imaging possible now

Low cost design makes ultrasound imaging affordable to the world – An ultra-low cost scanner that can be plugged into any computer or laptop to reveal vital information about the unborn child has been developed by engineers at Newcastle University, UK.

New technique for screening breast cancer using ultrasound

New screening technique could provide more reliable breast cancer detection — Initial tests show promising results of new ultrasonic screening technique – Scientists have successfully completed an initial trial of a new, potentially more reliable, technique for screening breast cancer using ultrasound. The team at the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), the UK’s National Measurement Institute, working with the University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, are now looking to develop the technique into a clinical device.

Breast ultrasound can reduce breast biopsies in young women

Targeted breast ultrasound can reduce biopsies for women under 40 – Targeted breast ultrasound of suspicious areas of the breast, including lumps, is a safe, reliable and cost-effective alternative to invasive biopsies for women under age 40.

Blood & ultrasound can diagnose ovarian cancer early

Ovarian cancer screening would be feasible in primary care, according to the early results of a major Department of Health, UK funded analysis. – Blood test combined with ultrasound scan can diagnose ovarian cancer (gynecological cancer) early in postmenopausal women, almost 2 years earlier than normal, reported by the British researchers in the Lancet.

Ultrasound with tPA effective for stroke

Study shows transcranial doppler ultrasound and clot busting drug tissue plasminogen activator tPA effective for stroke. – An experimental therapy using tiny bubbles activated by transcranial Doppler (TCD) ultrasound combined with the clot busting drug tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) is more effective than tPA alone in treating patients suffering from ischemic stroke, according to new research presented at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference in San Diego.

Ultrasound helps predict heart attacks in low risk patients

Low risk for heart attack? Could an ultrasound hold the answer? Ultrasound helps predict heart attacks in “low risk” patients. – By adding the results of an imaging technique to the traditional risk factors for coronary heart disease, doctors at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston found they were able to improve prediction of heart attacks in people previously considered low risk.

New ultrasound technique sharpens view of liver tumors

A high-energy form of ultrasound imaging developed by researchers at Duke University’s Pratt School of Engineering produces pictures of liver tumors that are better than those made with traditional ultrasound. – A new high-energy form of ultrasound imaging developed by researchers at Duke University’s Pratt School of Engineering produces pictures of liver tumors that are better than those made with traditional ultrasound, according to results of a clinical study.

Air pollution linked to heart attacks and strokes due to hardening of arteries

Air pollution and hardening of arteries — Long term exposure to air pollution may be linked to heart attacks and strokes by speeding up atherosclerosis – Long term exposure to air pollution may be linked to heart attacks and strokes by speeding up atherosclerosis, or “hardening of the arteries”. The researchers found that higher concentrations of fine particulate air pollution (PM2.5) were linked to a faster thickening of the inner two layers of the common carotid artery, an important blood vessel that provides blood to the head, neck, and brain.

Vitamin D may reduce uterine fibroid risk in women

Vitamin D may reduce risk of uterine fibroids, according to NIH study – Women who had sufficient amounts of vitamin D were 32 percent less likely to develop fibroids than women with insufficient vitamin D, revealed researchers. Fibroids, also known as uterine leiomyomata, are noncancerous tumors of the uterus.

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