https://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. A lightweight wearable device developed by UNSW engineers could one day help people monitor their heart and breathing health from home, potentially reducing hospital visits and allowing doctors to detect problems earlier. The flexible sensor patch, which attaches to the chest or over peripheral arteries using medical adhesive tape, is designed to continuously capture subtle vibrations produced by the heart, lungs, blood flow and pulse waves. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-tiny-patch-hospital-style-heart.html Tue, 09 Jun 2026 11:40:08 EDT news700223701 A customized throw-back video game may offer a surprisingly futuristic path to stroke recovery. In a new study, Northwestern University scientists developed a 90s-style video game to help chronic stroke survivors regain lost arm function. While wearing a small device on their impaired arm and using a laptop computer, players use their arm muscles to complete tasks such as flying a helicopter around the screen to hit a moving target. The muscle retraining helps separate the brain's uncoordinated movement signals, enabling muscles to work independently again. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-06-video-game-rehab-arm-movement.html Tue, 09 Jun 2026 09:00:03 EDT news700214221 Researchers at Concordia have developed an AI-assisted technique and a robotic platform that may one day help surgeons perform safer, faster and less invasive procedures to treat conditions such as blood clots located deep inside a patient's neurovascular pathways. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-magnet-soft-robots-safer-treatment.html Tue, 26 May 2026 11:20:06 EDT news699012063 Engineers at the University of California San Diego have created a soft, wearable ultrasound patch that can continuously monitor a fetus for hours at a time—and it can do so consistently even as the fetus and umbilical cord constantly move during pregnancy. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-wearable-ultrasound-patch-high-pregnancies.html Tue, 26 May 2026 05:00:01 EDT news698917441 A new implantable device which aims to maximize the effectiveness of light-sensitive drugs could improve outcomes for bladder cancer patients in the future. Engineers and cancer scientists from the University of Glasgow are behind the development of the device, which uses wirelessly powered micro-LEDs to boost the delivery of light through tissue-mimicking models in the lab. The platform, developed by a team led by Professor David Flynn, is a first step towards a more precise, affordable and comfortable application of photodynamic therapy to treat bladder cancers in the years ahead. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-implantable-tech-bladder-cancer-treatment.html Thu, 21 May 2026 14:20:05 EDT news698586181 Diabetic ulcers, which occur in patients with diabetes, are dangerous complications that can lead to amputation if the treatment window is missed. A research team has developed a wireless, battery-free optoelectronic multi-modal sensor patch for diabetic ulcer management. It can monitor wound conditions in real time. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-real-diagnostic-smart-patch-diabetic.html Thu, 14 May 2026 11:50:12 EDT news697978141 Materials scientists have designed brain-stimulating contact lenses that are as effective as Prozac at treating depression in mice. The soft, transparent contact lenses have in-built electrodes that deliver mild electrical signals to the brain via the retina to stimulate specific brain regions associated with depression. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-contact-lenses-depression-mice-effectively.html Thu, 14 May 2026 11:00:06 EDT news697885681 University of California, Irvine researchers have invented a wearable, wireless, battery-free, bioelectronic sensor to monitor users' health by analyzing molecular biomarkers in human sweat. The device is called the In-Situ Regeneratable, Environmentally Stable, Multimodal, Wireless, Wearable Molecular Sweat Sensing System, or IREM-W2MS3, and is described in a study published today in Nature Biomedical Engineering. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-wearable-sensor-multiple-biomarkers-days.html Wed, 13 May 2026 15:51:33 EDT news697906218 Northwestern University engineers have developed a small, wireless polygraph system you can wear. Unlike polygraphs used in television crime dramas, this wearable version isn't optimized to detect lies. Instead, engineers and physicians designed it to sense underlying stress hidden deep within the body—no interrogation room required. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-wearable-polygraph-tracks-hidden-stress.html Wed, 13 May 2026 14:00:07 EDT news697824781 Breast cancer impacts over two million women around the world each year. Following radiotherapy or chemotherapy, breast-conserving surgery is the first line of intervention for early-stage breast cancer. This surgery aims to remove the tumor while preserving as much of the healthy tissue as possible, but since precise tumor mapping during surgery is challenging, sometimes the tumor is not fully extracted. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-held-cancer-probe-surgeons-tumors.html Tue, 05 May 2026 11:40:01 EDT news697198797 Medical imaging devices such as endoscopes transmit their data via cables to monitors and hospital information systems. In collaboration with partners, Fraunhofer researchers in the OWIMED project are working to make data cables superfluous in the operating room of the future. The project team has developed a prototype for an endoscope that uses light to transmit the images from a laparoscopic procedure in the abdominal cavity. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-powered-link-wireless-endoscope-stream.html Mon, 04 May 2026 13:20:06 EDT news697112101 A research team led by Prof. Jerald Yoo from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Seoul National University (SNU) has developed a skin-conformal wearable health care system, "SkinECG," capable of measuring electrocardiogram (ECG) signals without a battery. By combining energy harvesting with human body–coupled power transfer, the study presents a new solution to one of the most critical challenges in wearable devices: power supply. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-05-battery-free-skin-conformal-wearable.html Fri, 01 May 2026 14:00:04 EDT news696851821 Cancer treatment and other delicate medical procedures could one day be carried out using tiny microrobots guided precisely inside the body after scientists developed a new magnetic tool to control them. The new tool, called the Tuneable Magnetic End Effector (TME), was developed by the University of Essex's Robotics for Under Millimetre Innovation (RUMI) Lab to generate magnetic fields that can be switched, shaped and redirected with high precision. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-microrobotics-technology-cancer-treatments-future.html Tue, 28 Apr 2026 15:40:03 EDT news696603138 Vanderbilt researchers led by Xiaoguang Dong, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, have developed a novel device that can be used remotely to continuously monitor the airway stents of patients with diseases like lung cancer. The research was published in Science Advances on April 15, with Mechanical Engineering Ph.D. student Yusheng Wang as the first author and co-authors from Vanderbilt University, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and Texas A&M University. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-battery-free-airway-device-stent.html Mon, 27 Apr 2026 13:40:04 EDT news696512941 Obesity during pregnancy has been steadily increasing worldwide. In the United States, over 60% of pregnant individuals enter pregnancy overweight or obese, and more than half go on to exceed recommended gestational weight gain guidelines. This growing pattern is a concern for health care professionals, as obesity during pregnancy is linked to a higher risk of several health complications for the mother. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-mobile-app-based-healthy-weight.html Wed, 22 Apr 2026 12:00:04 EDT news696071831 Smart implants that not only stabilize a fracture but also monitor the healing process from day one—and deliver targeted support when required—are currently being developed at Saarland University by a team of engineers, medical researchers and computer scientists. The engineering team led by Professor Paul Motzki is contributing shape-memory micro-actuators with integrated sensing capabilities, while Professor Bergita Ganse and her research group provide the medical expertise in fracture healing. If a fracture is not healing as it should, these novel implants can respond mechanically at the fracture gap by adapting their stiffness or by applying controlled micro-movements to mechanically stimulate tissue and promote bone regeneration. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-smart-implants-robotic-micro-actuators.html Tue, 21 Apr 2026 21:40:03 EDT news695992511 Diagnostic tests for stomach conditions are tough for patients, as many of the most accurate ones involve minor surgical procedures or invasive techniques. Swallowable medical devices have emerged as a possible solution. Complex procedures like endoscopy are replaced by a pill-sized camera, which is swallowed and transmits data about the patient's health as it travels through the body. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-wireless-tissue-aware-medical-device.html Tue, 21 Apr 2026 15:50:01 EDT news696004201 Researchers have created heart monitoring sensors that conform to the skin, are comfortable, and can be worn while people are moving. With performance comparable to sensors already on the market, the new technology can be made using existing manufacturing processes. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-skin-heart-material-term-ecg.html Mon, 20 Apr 2026 16:20:01 EDT news695917801 In a recent publication appearing in Advanced Science, researchers at the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience challenge the assumptions surrounding the design and materials used for brain implants. Softer, flexible implants are gentler than older ones, but they are not completely harmless. By carefully studying these effects, researchers can begin to design safer implants, and bring long-term, reliable implants closer to reality. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-subtle-science-safer-brain-implants.html Thu, 16 Apr 2026 18:40:03 EDT news695576701 Wireless sensors used in wearable smart devices and medical equipment must be capable of detecting minute changes while maintaining high operational stability. However, existing technologies often utilize excessively high frequencies, leading to electromagnetic interference (EMI) or potential health risks to the human body. To address these fundamental issues, a Korean research team has developed a low-frequency-based wireless sensor technology. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-frequency-wireless-sensor-tracks-artery.html Mon, 13 Apr 2026 19:40:04 EDT news695315048 About one in three employees in Singapore report feeling burnt out—one of the highest rates globally. Burnout and chronic fatigue carry a substantial economic cost and pose serious risks in professions where alertness is critical. Yet diagnosing fatigue and related mental health conditions today relies largely on self-reported questionnaires, which tend to be subjective, intermittent, and poorly suited to real-time evaluation. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-smart-sensor-decodes-fatigue-stress.html Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:00:04 EDT news694094715 If you have a knee replacement, imagine pointing your phone at your knee and pulling up an app that tells you how much stress the artificial joint is experiencing. Knowing the activities that cause the biggest problems—which can lead to a second replacement surgery—would be invaluable. Research led by Binghamton University is closer to making this technology a reality. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-04-closer-smart-sensors-knee.html Fri, 03 Apr 2026 10:40:03 EDT news694430642 Millions of people in the United States have chronic wounds, including those living with diabetes, patients recovering from burns, post-surgical patients and other people with injuries. For clinicians, early detection of infection, inflammation or other recovery setbacks can be challenging to detect, primarily because patients may be self-reporting or awaiting lab results. This can result in a worsening infection, long-term damage and, in some cases, amputation. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-smart-bandage-tracks-wound-status.html Sun, 29 Mar 2026 10:00:18 EDT news693752690 Implanting living cells as long-term drug producers could transform treatment for numerous diseases, but it is difficult to house the tiny workers in quantities high enough to ensure dosage needs are met while also keeping the cells alive and thriving. Researchers at Rice University and collaborators at Carnegie Mellon University and Northwestern University have now successfully integrated solutions to several persistent challenges to implantable drug factories into a single device. According to a new study, the Hybrid Oxygenation Bioelectronics system for Implanted Therapy, or HOBIT, shields a sufficient number of cells from the host immune system in a comfortably small volume while also providing access to oxygen and nutrients. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-oxygen-problem-cell-based-drug.html Sat, 28 Mar 2026 12:10:02 EDT news693834809 Most diabetes patients must carefully monitor their blood sugar levels and inject insulin multiple times per day, to help keep their blood sugar from getting too high. As a possible alternative to those injections, MIT researchers are developing an implantable device that contains insulin-producing cells. The device encapsulates the cells, protecting them from immune rejection, and it also carries an onboard oxygen generator to keep the cells healthy. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-implantable-islet-cells-diabetes-insulin.html Thu, 26 Mar 2026 16:40:08 EDT news693760731 Sticking to the same meals and eating a consistent number of calories each day may help people lose more weight, according to research published in the journal Health Psychology. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-weight-meals.html Thu, 26 Mar 2026 09:00:06 EDT news693640926 Ballet is an art of illusion: dancers seem to float across the stage and, in their leaps, appear to defy gravity for a moment. The effort behind this lightness and grace usually remains invisible to audiences. "Professional dance is a high-performance sport," says Professor Eileen Wanke of the Institute of Occupational, Social and Environmental Medicine at Goethe University Frankfurt. "It requires exceptional physical control and athleticism, developed through many years of intensive training." https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-sensor-injury-pro-dancers.html Thu, 19 Mar 2026 11:40:04 EDT news693138962 Exhaled breath can provide a treasure trove of health information, offering a noninvasive window to both respiratory microenvironments and systemic physiological states. But collecting such data is a challenge. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-03-smart-mask-tracks-biomarkers-days.html Mon, 16 Mar 2026 17:20:09 EDT news692892061 Glaucoma is a leading cause of blindness among people who are unable to monitor and manage their intraocular pressure (IOP) daily. The current tools for IOP measurement are not portable, convenient, easily accessible, or capable of continuous (24/7) monitoring. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-01-smart-contact-lens-thin-sensor.html Tue, 27 Jan 2026 14:56:42 EST news688748161 In a new leap for neurobiology and bioelectronics, Northwestern University scientists have developed a wireless device that uses light to send information directly to the brain—bypassing the body's natural sensory pathways. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2025-12-wireless-device-patterns-brain.html Mon, 08 Dec 2025 06:30:59 EST news684397814