Johns Hopkins University Archives - Medical Design Sourcing

New brain imaging technique delivers superscans with less data

A new algorithm, called DeepSTI, achieves a highly detailed 3D-reconstruction that shows magnetic susceptibility of tissues in the human brain. [Image courtesy of Johns Hopkins]

Researchers at Johns Hopkins University developed a new algorithm that can scan the brain for precise brain tissue susceptibility information.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) offers images of the body that allow doctors to diagnose injury or illness. MRI’s susceptibility tensor imaging (STI) technique measures the magnetic susceptibility of different brain tissues. This information can help to better understand, diagnose and monitor neurological diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS) and Alzheimer’s.

The team at Johns Hopkins have a new algorithm for this technique, called DeepSTI. It takes data from multiple individual scans and provides a “super-scan” with brain tissue susceptibility information. The met…

Why hearing aids might slow cognitive decline in older adults

[Image courtesy of USF]

Results from a clinical trial indicated that hearing aids may play a part in reducing long-term cognitive decline for older adults.

According to the University of South Florida, it was the largest randomized, controlled clinical trial testing the efficacy of hearing aids for reducing long-term cognitive decline in older adults. ACHIEVE evaluated patients between ages 70 and 84 with untreated hearing loss. These patients were free from substantial cognitive impairment.

Researchers conducted the study across four U.S. study sites, evaluating 977 total participants across two populations. Healthy community volunteers included 739 participants, while 238 participated in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study.

The multisite study found that, in older adults at increased risk for cognitive decline, hearing intervention slowed down the loss of thinking and memory abi…

Johns Hopkins-led team’s robot performs laparoscopic surgery without human help

The Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot (STAR) at work. [Image courtesy of Azel Krieger and Jin Kang/Johns Hopkins University]A Johns Hopkins University research team has created a robot that can perform laparoscopic surgery on a pig’s soft tissue without a human being’s aid.

The researchers described their latest advance with their Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot (STAR) in the January 26 issue of Science Robotics.

“Our findings show that we can automate one of the most intricate and delicate tasks in surgery: the reconnection of two ends of an intestine. The STAR performed the procedure in four animals, and it produced significantly better results than humans performing the same procedure,” said senior author Axel Krieger, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Johns Hopkins.

Activ Surgical (Boston) has roots in the STAR work back in 2016, though Activ’s founder Dr. Peter Kim has since moved on. Activ Surgical’s present focus is on its Act…

Johns Hopkins-led team’s robot performs laparoscopic surgery without human help

The Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot (STAR) at work. [Image courtesy of Azel Krieger and Jin Kang/Johns Hopkins University]

A Johns Hopkins University research team has created a robot that can perform laparoscopic surgery on a pig’s soft tissue without a human being’s aid.

The researchers described their latest advance with their Smart Tissue Autonomous Robot (STAR) in the January 26 issue of Science Robotics.

“Our findings show that we can automate one of the most intricate and delicate tasks in surgery: the reconnection of two ends of an intestine. The STAR performed the procedure in four animals, and it produced significantly better results than humans performing the same procedure,” said senior author Axel Krieger, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Johns Hopkins.

Krieger worked with collaborators at the Children’s National Hospital in Washington, D…

Abbott researchers help discover a clue to an HIV cure

Scanning electron micrograph of HIV-1 (in green) budding from cultured lymphocyte. [Image courtesy of CDC]Abbott announced today that a team including its scientists has uncovered a rare group of Democratic Republic of Congo residents who are HIV positive but have almost nonexistent viral loads without using antiretroviral treatments.

This group of “HIV elite controllers” opens up a new area for researchers to discover biological trends that could inform the creation of better HIV treatments and potential vaccines.

The researchers from Abbott, Johns Hopkins University, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the University of Missouri-Kansas City and the Université Protestante au Congo found that the prevalence of HIV elite controllers was 2.7–4.3% in the DRC, versus 0.1–2% worldwide.

Get the full story on our sister site Drug Discovery & Development.

Abbott researchers help discover a clue to an HIV cure

Scanning electron micrograph of HIV-1 (in green) budding from cultured lymphocyte. [Image courtesy of CDC]

Abbott announced today that a team including its scientists has uncovered a rare group of Democratic Republic of Congo residents who are HIV positive but have almost nonexistent viral loads without using antiretroviral treatments.

This group of “HIV elite controllers” opens up a new area for researchers to discover biological trends that could inform the creation of better HIV treatments and potential vaccines.

The researchers from Abbott, Johns Hopkins University, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the University of Missouri-Kansas City and the Université Protestante au Congo found that the prevalence of HIV elite controllers was 2.7–4.3% in the DRC, versus 0.1–2% worldwide.

The group published their findings today in EBioMedicine (part of The Lancet). Read more

This implant could help people with inner ear disorder

Image from Johns Hopkins Vestibular NeuroEngineering Laboratory

Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine are developing an implant to improve quality of life in those with bilateral vestibular hypofunction (BVH).

BVH — the loss of the inner ears’ sense of balance — has symptoms that can hinder walking, cause dizziness and decrease quality of life, but the researchers believe their implant can facilitate walking, relieve dizziness and improve quality of life, according to a news release.

The surgically implanted stimulator electrically bypasses malfunctioning areas of the inner ear to partially restore the sensation of balance. Results from a study of eight patients using the device were published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Vestibular rehabilitation exercises are currently the standard therapy for BVH, while doctors advise patients with BVH to avoid medications that damage the i…

Investors find $257 million to commit to Thrive’s CancerSEEK

Investors once again lined up behind a potentially revolutionary cancer diagnostic being developed by Thrive Earlier Detection Corp.

The one-year-old start up raised a $257 million Series B round from a syndicate of venture and crossover investors, including round leaders Casdin Capital and Section 32 and new investors Bain Capital Life Sciences, Brown Advisory, Driehaus Capital Management, Intermountain Ventures, Janus Henderson Investors, Lux Capital, Moore Strategic Ventures, Perceptive Advisors, Rock Springs Capital, Sands Capital, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., and other undisclosed investors.

The new round is more than double the $110 million Series A round raised by the company last May. The company said all of its first-round investors participated in the new financing including Casdin, Biomatics, Third Rock Ventures, BlueCross BlueShield Venture Partners, Invus, Exact Sciences, Cowin Venture, Camden Partners, Gamma 3 LLC …