Vexos to manufacture 10,000 ventilators for Canadian COVID-19 patients

The MVM ventilator, which Vexos will manufacture for COVID-19 patients in Canada. (Image from Vexos)

Electronics manufacturer Vexos said this week that it has signed an agreement with the government of Canada to manufacture 10,000 mechanical ventilators for COVID-19 patients in that country.

The LaGrange, Ohio-based company said it will build the ventilators, known as Mechanical Ventilator Milano (MVM), under an exclusive license agreement with Elemaster Group for the Americas. Vexos said it is also working closely with JMP Solutions, a London, Ontario company that specializes in industrial robotics, control systems, and systems automation in the manufacture of the ventilator.

The MVM ventilator was developed by the International MVM Group as a simple but powerful ventilator designed to address the specific needs for the care and recovery of severely affected COVID-19 patients. The group was formed by…

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Siren raises $11.8m Series B

Siren, a developer of smart textiles with remote patient monitoring applications, announced today that it raised $11.8 million in a Series B financing.

The San Francisco-based medical device company had its funding round led by Anathem Ventures, with participation from existing investors DCM, Khosla Ventures, 500 Startups and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund. Additionally, DCM partner Jason Krikorian will join Siren’s board and Anathem managing partner Crystal McKellar will join Siren as an advisor.

Siren’s latest round of funding adds nearly $12 million to the $22 million it has already raised across three funding rounds since its founding in 2015, according to a news release. The company noted in the release that the finances it has secured is helping it to position itself for commercial expansion.

The company’s portfolio includes a temperature-monitoring sock capable of connecting wirelessly to a software application, allowing podi…

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Texas-based team seeks EUA for 3D printed emergency ventilator

A team of physicians and engineers developed a hands-free resuscitator bag compression device that can be utilized as an emergency ventilator during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the pandemic goes on and a shortage of vital equipment, including ventilators, continues, a number of companies and research teams from all over have worked to create alternative options. One such alternative is this collaboration from researchers at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso and The University of Texas at El Paso, with contributions from Bessel, Ansys and Stratasys (NSDQ:SSYS).

Get the full story at our sister site, MassDevice.

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New research suggests neutralizing antibodies could help against COVID-19

This transmission electron microscope image shows SARS-CoV-2 – the virus that causes COVID-19 – isolated from a patient in the U.S. The protrusions visible on the outside are the spike proteins that the virus particles use to fuse with and gain entry to host cells. [Image courtesy of NIAID]

New findings from an international research team suggest that neutralizing antibodies could have a use as a preventative treatment or as a post-exposure therapy against COVID-19.

Their latest findings, which drew on data gathered from Berkeley National Laboratory’s (Berkeley Lab’s) Advanced Light Source (ALS) — suggest that antibodies derived from SARS survivors could potently block entry of SARS-CoV-2 and other closely related coronaviruses into host cells. The scientists, who recently published their work in Nature, noted that the most promising candidate antibody is already on an accelerated development path toward clin…

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MIT researchers may have invented a safer way of splitting ventilators

[Image courtesy of MIT]MIT and Brigham and Women’s Hospital researchers say they have a way of splitting ventilators which could address many of the safety concerns — potentially boosting the supply of ventilators amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

They have demonstrated their concept’s effectiveness in the lab — but they still caution it should be used only as a last resort during an emergency when a patient’s life is at stake.

Ventilators should only be shared as a last resort. One problem: Patients sharing the ventilator must all have the same lung capacity. If one patient’s lung function improves or another’s deteriorates, one patient may receive the right amount of air but other may be out of luck.

Basically the MIT team incorporated flow valves, one for each patient’s branch, that allow them to control the amount of air that each receives. “These flow valves allow you to personalize the flow to each patient based on their needs. They also ensure that if o…

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MIT researchers may have invented a safer way of splitting ventilators

[Image courtesy of MIT]

MIT and Brigham and Women’s Hospital researchers say they have a way of splitting ventilators which could address many of the safety concerns — potentially boosting the supply of ventilators amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

They have demonstrated their concept’s effectiveness in the lab — but they still caution it should be used only as a last resort during an emergency when a patient’s life is at stake.

Ventilators should only be shared as a last resort. One problem: Patients sharing the ventilator must all have the same lung capacity. If one patient’s lung function improves or another’s deteriorates, one patient may receive the right amount of air but other may be out of luck.

Basically the MIT team incorporated flow valves, one for each patient’s branch, that allow them to control the amount of air that each receives. “These flow valves allow you to personalize the flow to eac…

Read more
  • 0

MIT researchers may have invented a safer way of splitting ventilators

[Image courtesy of MIT]

MIT and Brigham and Women’s Hospital researchers say they have a way of splitting ventilators which could address many of the safety concerns — potentially boosting the supply of ventilators amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

They have demonstrated their concept’s effectiveness in the lab — but they still caution it should be used only as a last resort during an emergency when a patient’s life is at stake.

Ventilators should only be shared as a last resort. One problem: Patients sharing the ventilator must all have the same lung capacity. If one patient’s lung function improves or another’s deteriorates, one patient may receive the right amount of air but other may be out of luck.

Basically the MIT team incorporated flow valves, one for each patient’s branch, that allow them to control the amount of air that each receives. “These flow valves allow you to personalize the flow…

Read more
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What is a pulse oximeter — and how does it work?

If you’re recovering from a respiratory problem — including COVID-19 — chances are you may have had your oxygen levels checked with a pulse oximeter.

Pulse oximetry is the non-invasive measurement of oxygen saturation (SpO2). Oxygen saturation is defined as the amount of oxygen dissolved in the blood, based on the detection of Hemoglobin, Hb, and Deoxyhemoglobin, HbO2.

The typical pulse oximeter is a device that clamps on one of your fingers. Home-use oximeters are often battery-powered and self-contained with the oxygen level displayed on a built-in LCD along with heart rate.

Go to our WTWH Media sister site Microcontroller Tips and check out a teardown of a home-use pulse oximeter made by Veridian Healthcare in Illinois. 

 

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Siemens Healthineers to produce 50m antibody tests per month against COVID-19

Siemens Healthineers (ETR: SHL) said today that it has started worldwide shipments of its COVID-19 antibody test, with a goal of producing 50 million tests per month as the pandemic evolves.

The German medtech giant boasts that it has 20,000 systems worldwide to run the tests, including what it describes as the largest analyzer installed base in the U.S. Siemens Healthineers is increasing test production at its Walpole (Walpole, Mass.) and Glasgow (Newark, Del.) facilities so that it can exceed 50 million tests per month starting in June.

Get the full story on our sister site MassDevice. 

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Siemens Healthineers to produce 50m antibody tests per month against COVID-19

Siemens Healthineers (ETR: SHL) said today that it has started worldwide shipments of its COVID-19 antibody test, with a goal of producing 50 million tests per month as the pandemic evolves.

The German medtech giant also announced that FDA has granted an emergency use authorization for its PCR Fast Track Diagnostics (FTD) SARS-CoV-2 Assay6 test kit.

Both types of tests are important: Antibody tests can tell who has had the coronavirus in the past and hopefully developed some immunity, while people need diagnostics tests to tell whether they are experiencing a COVID-19 infection right now.

Siemens officials say the company’s antibody tests demonstrate 100%  sensitivity (ability to exclude false negatives) and 99.8% specificity (few false positives) in identifying SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in as few as 10 minutes. The tests have a CE Mark in the EU, and Siemens is seeking an FDA EUA.

Siemens boasts that it has 20,000 systems worldwide to run the t…

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New Jersey man charged in $45m PPE price-gouging scheme

A New Jersey man is facing charges of federal wire fraud for an alleged scheme to sell $45 million worth of personal protective equipment that prosecutors say he didn’t have.

Ronald Romano, a Manalapan, N.J. used car salesman, was arrested for supposedly attempting to deceive and price gouge New York City into buying personal protective equipment that he didn’t own or have the authorization to sell. Along with three co-conspirators, Romano attempted to exploit the city during the COVID-19 pandemic while hospitals and frontline workers faced shortages of PPE, federal prosecutors claim.

“As alleged, used car salesman Ronald Romano saw the current health emergency as an opportunity to cash in, using lies and deception in what he envisioned as a get-rich-quick scheme. Romano allegedly lied repeatedly about his authority and ability to sell large quantities of personal protective equipment to the City – equipment he knew was desperately needed for …

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Philips wins 510(k) for sensor to detect COVID-19 patient deterioration

(Image from Philips)

Royal Philips (NYSE:PHG) announced that it has won FDA 510(k) clearance for a wearable biosensor to help manage confirmed and suspected COVID-19 patients in the hospital.

The Amsterdam-based company described the BX100 biosensor as a wireless wearable sensor designed to help healthcare providers detect when COVID-19 patients in lower-acuity units are at risk for deterioration so they can intervene.

The lightweight, disposable biosensor is a 5-day, single-use wearable patch can be integrated with a scalable hub to monitor multiple patients across different rooms, according to Philips. It is designed to adhere discreetly to the chest to collect, store, measure and transmit respiratory rate and heart rate every minute — the top two predictors of deterioration — as well as contextual parameters such as posture, activity level and ambulation. The sensor is built to work with existing …

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