<?xml version="1.0" encoding="iso-8859-1"?>

<!DOCTYPE rss PUBLIC "-//Netscape Communications//DTD RSS 0.91//EN" "http://my.netscape.com/publish/formats/rss-0.91.dtd">
<rss version="2.0">
<channel>
<language>en-us</language>
<title>Medlogs RSS feed</title>
<description>This is the aggregated RSS feed for Medlogs.com, a medical news and weblog aggregator</description>
<link>http://www.medlogs.com</link>
<copyright>copyright medlogs.com 2004</copyright>
<lastBuildDate></lastBuildDate>
<webMaster>webmaster@medlogs.com</webMaster>
<item>
<title>
Watermelons For Erectile Dysfunction
</title> 
<link>
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/ParallelUniverses/~3/326112126/watermelons-for-erectile-dysfunction.html
</link>
<pubDate>July 3, 2008, 5:43 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[
Watermelons are loaded with an organic compound called citrulline that can trigger blood vessels to relax, much like Viagra does, according to scientists from Texas A&amp;M University in the United States.Dr Bhimu Patel, who led the study, said that when watermelon is consumed, citrulline is converted to an amino acid called arginine which improves circulation."Arginine boosts nitric oxide, which relaxes blood vessels, the same basic effect that Viagra has, to treat erectile dysfunction and maybe even prevent it."Watermelon may not be as organ specific as Viagra but it's a great way to relax blood vessels without any drug side-effects." ~ Telegraph.co.uk, 3 July 2008Yes. Like you, I never expected that. All this time, I never thought that this sweet fruit has Viagra-like effects.Locally known as "pakwan," it has been my favorite dessert when I was growing up in the province. I ate lots of pakwan when I was young. I especially like it more when it is served cold and freshly sliced after hours of being stored in the refrigerator.If it relaxes blood vessels, then, it may be a natural anti-hypertensive, too.QUESTIONS ---- Can those suffering from hypertension use this as alternative to their anti-hypertensive medication? Can those with erectile dyspfunction use this as alternative to Viagra?Answer: I do not think so. The best option is still to take the doctor-prescribed anti-hypertensive maintenance medication(s). Watermelons may supplement the anti-hypertensive treatment, but I don't think it should replace the standard medications. 'Same principle applies with erectile dysfunction problems, I think. Viagra has that advantage of being organ-specific.Another tip -- if you want to get more of the citrulline from watermelons, concentrate on the rind. According to scientists who studied watermelons, "there is more citrulline in the rind than the flesh." 

 

]]>
</description>
</item>
<item>
<title>
Better than hemlines: Pets as economic indicators (and more pet money news)
</title> 
<link>
http://www.dolittler.com/index.cfm/2008/7/3/dog.cat.veterinary.veterinarian.vet.Helmsley.recession.shelters
</link>
<pubDate>July 3, 2008, 4:47 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[

				
				With the R-word in full-on over-usage across the US, the news media is grasping for any kind of story to prove that we&rsquo;re really truly, honest-to-God suffering. With this American penchant for black news to back up our worst fears, some outlets are using pets to illustrate the economy at its worst.If last year was all about low quality pet food ingredients, this year it&rsquo;s about foreclosure abandonment. This, along with news of pet food expenses driving pets into the streets and joining the teeming minions in our overcrowded shelters, the stories aren&rsquo;t pretty. It&rsquo;s gotten so that even The Wall Street Journal and American Public Media's Marketplace report on these stories with the same cheekiness they handle so-called lipstick-indicator and hemlines&mdash;as if pets are on the same level as our feminine household frivolities. Meanwhile, Leona Helmsley&rsquo;s post-mortem bank account shows an $8 Billion credit in the line item titled, &ldquo;Fluffy.&rdquo; Hopefully this unbelievable chunk will end up in some well-managed shelter system&rsquo;s coffers. Can you see HSUS&rsquo;s Wayne Pacelle peeing himself to get ahold of it? I can.
				
				
]]>
</description>
</item>
<item>
<title>
'Log on to...' — How to let everyone know you're not with the program
</title> 
<link>
http://www.bookofjoe.com/2008/07/log-on-to-how-t.html
</link>
<pubDate>December 31, 1969, 11:00 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[


Listening to the TV announcers at Wimbledon telling me to "log on to nbcsports.com blah blah blah" it occurred to me that no one under the age of 20 "logs on" to anything. 

They're online all the time but they haven't the foggiest what "log on" means.

Time for the majordomos in TV production to pick up the clue phone if they want to retain any portion of the coveted young audience they supposedly crave. 
]]>
</description>
</item>
<item>
<title>
Motion C5 Mobile Clinical Assistant Gets New Features
</title> 
<link>
http://www.medgadget.com/archives/2008/07/motion_c5_mobile_clinical_assistant_gets_new_features.html
</link>
<pubDate>July 3, 2008, 3:44 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[

        
Motion Computing has just announced that its clinically oriented C5 tablet PC, a computer covered by us on a number of occasions before (see flashbacks below), has just been upgraded and fortified thanks to a new solid state drive (SSD).

Here's more:

The C5 now features integrated mobile broadband and solid state drive (SSD) options to extend its usability to the point of care, regardless of patient location. Additionally, the C5 and F5 now feature improved capacity with standard 80 GB hard disk drives (HDD) at no additional cost.

&ldquo;Motion understands mobile workforces and we are focused on improving productivity across a broad range of environments, from the patient bedside to the construction site,&rdquo; said Mike Stinson, VP of Marketing at Motion. &ldquo;Customer feedback is a critical part of improving our tablet PCs, and based on recent input we&rsquo;re confident that these upgrades will enable our target customers to be more productive, no matter where work takes them.&rdquo;

With the C5&rsquo;s optional integrated mobile broadband, mobile clinicians can improve productivity by accessing important patient information, including digital images and patient history details. For many mobile point of care applications, such as those in home healthcare, ongoing connectivity will enable better collaboration with other treating clinicians and reduce travel time by allowing the immediate transfer of documentation after every patient visit, which can reduce processing delays and improve billing cycle times. Additionally, the optional SSD will help further protect the C5 from the occasional bumps and drops experienced by highly mobile professionals.

Press release: Motion's C5 MCA and F5 Semi-Rugged Tablet PC Enhance Mobile Workforce Productivity with Upgrades, New Peripherals...

Product page: C5 Mobile Clinical Assistant Tablet Computers...

Flashbacks: Motion C5: Mobile Clinical Assistant ; DINAMAP to Marry Motion C5 Mobile Tablet; Hands-on with Motion Computing's C5 medical Tablet PC.
        
    
]]>
</description>
</item>
<item>
<title>
LidPunch Jar Opener
</title> 
<link>
http://www.bookofjoe.com/2008/07/lid-punch-jar-o.html
</link>
<pubDate>December 31, 1969, 11:00 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[


That's different.

I've heard of punching your ticket but this is ridiculous.

From websites:

LidPunch Jar Opener

Simply place this ingenious device on the lid and tap the top. 

It punches a tiny hole in the lid, releasing the vacuum seal and relieving pressure on the lid. 

Now the lid can be easily unscrewed.

Includes 4 magnetic sealers to seal the hole and an easy-to-use, 4-in-1 can/bottle opener.....................

Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall....



$14.99.
]]>
</description>
</item>
<item>
<title>
Motion C5 Mobile Clinical Assistant Gets New Features
</title> 
<link>
http://www.medgadget.com/archives/2008/07/motion_c5_mobile_clinical_assistant_gets_new_features.html
</link>
<pubDate>July 3, 2008, 3:42 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[

Motion Computing has just announced that its clinically oriented C5 tablet PC, a computer covered by us on a number of occasions before (see flashbacks below), has just been upgraded and fortified thanks to a new solid state drive (SSD).

Here's more:

The C5 now features integrated mobile broadband and solid state drive (SSD) options to extend its usability to the point of care, regardless of patient location. Additionally, the C5 and F5 now feature improved capacity with standard 80 GB hard disk drives (HDD) at no additional cost.

&ldquo;Motion understands mobile workforces and we are focused on improving productivity across a broad range of environments, from the patient bedside to the construction site,&rdquo; said Mike Stinson, VP of Marketing at Motion. &ldquo;Customer feedback is a critical part of improving our tablet PCs, and based on recent input we&rsquo;re confident that these upgrades will enable our target customers to be more productive, no matter where work takes them.&rdquo;

With the C5&rsquo;s optional integrated mobile broadband, mobile clinicians can improve productivity by accessing important patient information, including digital images and patient history details. For many mobile point of care applications, such as those in home healthcare, ongoing connectivity will enable better collaboration with other treating clinicians and reduce travel time by allowing the immediate transfer of documentation after every patient visit, which can reduce processing delays and improve billing cycle times. Additionally, the optional SSD will help further protect the C5 from the occasional bumps and drops experienced by highly mobile professionals.

Press release: Motion's C5 MCA and F5 Semi-Rugged Tablet PC Enhance Mobile Workforce Productivity with Upgrades, New Peripherals...

Product page: C5 Mobile Clinical Assistant Tablet Computers...

Flashbacks: Motion C5: Mobile Clinical Assistant ; DINAMAP to Marry Motion C5 Mobile Tablet; Hands-on with Motion Computing's C5 medical Tablet PC.




]]>
</description>
</item>
<item>
<title>
Laser Opto-Acoustic Imaging Technology from Seno Medical
</title> 
<link>
http://www.medgadget.com/archives/2008/07/laser_optoacoustic_imaging_technology_from_seno_medical.html
</link>
<pubDate>July 3, 2008, 2:44 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[

        
Here's what we know about the opto-acoustic imaging technology from Seno Medical Instruments, Inc., a San Antonio, Texas firm. A recent report on the wires says that there is a new research agreement between Seno Medical and two Canadian universities to study the company's first-ever commercially available opto-acoustic small animal imaging device. It turns out the technology, that utilizes the conversion of laser pulses into acoustic energy once the light hits tissue, can have profound consequences on development of future diagnostic imaging modalities for cancer and beyond.

The company explains its technology:

Laser opto-acoustic imaging technology combines optics and acoustics with a goal of improving the accuracy of the cancer diagnosis without the use of ionizing radiation (x-ray). The process starts by illuminating the breast with laser light of specific wavelengths. Tumors preferentially absorb the light over normal tissue and become slightly heated. A transient thermoelastic expansion causes a tumor to emit a pressure (acoustic) wave. This acoustic wave is then detected by an array of sensors positioned around the periphery of the breast held within the probe.

Signals from the sensors are analyzed and assembled into high contrast, high-resolution images that present the lesion in striking color. Because image contrast is related to both blood volume and oxygenation status, lesions may be correlated with benign or malignant histopathology. This is because malignant tumors possess increased microvasculature, but deplete oxygen from the blood at a higher rate than benign growths. Deoxygenated blood results in brighter images in the presence of a shorter wavelength than it does in the presence of a longer wavelength.

This technology has the merit of both the high contrast and spectral specificity of optical imaging and the sensitivity and resolution of ultrasonic imaging. It is more than just a combination of the two methods. The goal is to incorporate laser illumination and ultrasonic detection to achieve very high detection sensitivity.

Laser opto-acoustic imaging may permit the identification of tumors as small as 2 mm and has demonstrated the ability to see submillimeter structures. Early detection is important because biologically advanced tumors are more capable of metastasis.

Technology page @ Seno Medical: Laser Opto-Acoustic Imaging...

Press release: Seno Medical Instruments Launches First-Ever Commercially Available Opto-Acoustic Small Animal Imaging Research System...

Flashbacks: Optoacoustic Technology for Early Cancer Detection 
        
    
]]>
</description>
</item>
<item>
<title>
Indo-Bhutan health corridor soon
</title> 
<link>
http://bruno.penandscale.com/2008/07/indo-bhutan-health-corridor-soon.html
</link>
<pubDate>July 3, 2008, 2:44 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[
The Governments of India and Bhutan are working on a draft proposal to facilitate people living along the Assam-Bhutan border avail best of medical services.“The draft Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) will be a ticket of sort that would help poor patients from both the countries to cross the borders to access medical benefits,” Nedan Foundation Director Digambar Narzary said.To prepare the draft, Nedan is working in coordination with the immigration officials, police forces and various civil society organisations of India and Bhutan.Nedan Foundation is an Assam-based non governmental organisation (NGO), which is preparing the draft proposal to be signed by border commissioners of the two countries in August.The border areas falling in this health corridor are the Bodo Territorial Autonomous District (BTAD) in Assam and Samdrup Jongkhar in Bhutan.The opening of the corridor holds immense importance for the Bodo tribals who live in areas with negligible healthcare centres.“Bhutan has some of the best medical health centres. The corridor would greatly benefit Bodo people, who will only have to cross the border to get themselves treated,” Narzary said.An official of Assam’s Health Department said that the state government will extend all sort of facilities to the Bhutanese who are on the lookout for medical benefits in Assam and neighbouring states.Out of the four districts of BTAD, three—Kokrajhar, Baska and Chirang—share the 700-km border with Bhutan. The fourth district is Udalguri.
]]>
</description>
</item>
<item>
<title>
Bob Dylan's day job — 'The most interesting radio show to hit the airwaves in decades'
</title> 
<link>
http://www.bookofjoe.com/2008/07/bob-dylans-day.html
</link>
<pubDate>December 31, 1969, 11:00 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[


Who knew?

Not me, that's for sure.

Long story short: Dylan hosts a weekly hour-long show on XM satellite radio, each time choosing a topic out of the air upon which to base the songs and commentary that follow.

Here's Terry Teachout's June 21, 2008 Wall Street Journal story about Dylan's pretty much under-the-radar gig.

Bob Dylan's Day Job

A '60s troubadour turns postmodern disc jockey

Satellite radio is the open secret of the new media. If you're one of the 17 million Americans who owns a satellite-equipped car or home receiver, you have access to a staggeringly diverse variety of round-the-clock programming that ranges from reggaeton and Howard Stern to Frank Sinatra and "The Shadow." Yet for most of the rest of us, satellite radio is still barely more than a whispered rumor. But now that FCC chairman Kevin Martin has given a thumbs-up sign to the merger of XM and Sirius, the two U.S.-based satellite services, the chances that satellite radio will finally become a major media player have taken an upward tick — meaning that you may be on the verge of discovering "Theme Time Radio Hour," the most interesting radio show to hit the airwaves in decades.

"Theme Time Radio Hour" is heard on XM's Deep Tracks channel every Wednesday at 10 a.m. EDT, then repeated several times each week on various other channels. The host is none other than Bob Dylan. Yes, that Bob Dylan. Not that he has to vouch for his identity on the air: The raspy, nasal honk of his voice is instantly recognizable to anyone who knows anything about American popular culture. So is the fascinatingly wide-ranging musical sensibility that informs his program, which was launched two years ago and has racked up 75 episodes to date. Each week Mr. Dylan plucks a topic out of the air — colors, trains, death and taxes, spring cleaning — and plays recordings of a dozen songs whose lyrics relate to it in some way. In between songs he chats about the music and its makers, interspersing his gnomic mini-lectures with a cornucopia of old radio-station promos, celebrity vignettes and phony phone calls and email readings.

On a recent episode devoted to doctors, Mr. Dylan played, among other things, Jackson Browne's "Doctor My Eyes," B.B. King's "Walking Doctor Bill," Doc Pomus's "Send for the Doctor," the Rolling Stones' "Dear Doctor," the White Stripes' "Girl, You Have No Faith in Medicine," an obscure 1955 calypso song by Lord Lebby called "Dr. Kinsey Report," and "Hadacol Boogie," a jumping ditty recorded in 1949 by Bill Nettles and the Dixie Blue Boys whose subject was the once-celebrated patent medicine touted by its maker as a cure-all for "stomach disturbances, gas, heartburn, indigestion, nagging aches and pains, and certain nervous disorders."

Mr. Dylan's crisp, pungent commentaries were as listenable as the songs he played. Toward the end of the show, he introduced a gospel number by the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi by gently chiding listeners who turn up their noses at songs on religious themes: "Any time people sing about what they believe, it elevates it. You don't have to be a junkie to enjoy the Velvet Underground song 'Heroin.' You don't have to have horns and a pitchfork to enjoy 'Sympathy for the Devil,' but it does help. The thing is, it's all music, and when the people believe what they're singing, it's just better."

Part of what I find so engaging about "Theme Time Radio Hour" is that it flies in the face of the conventional wisdom about radio in the 21st century. Teenagers and college graduates are less likely to listen to radio nowadays, a decline that media consultants attribute to the rise of the iPod, which allows its owners to choose from thousands of previously downloaded songs at will instead of settling for whatever a disc jockey cares to play. The assumption is that under-40 listeners are now choosing to withdraw into gated communities of musical taste, behind whose electronic walls they listen only to what they already know they like. That's how most of the hundreds of existing satellite-radio channels work. Each one is devoted to a narrow stylistic sliver — show tunes, New Age, old-school hip-hop, even 24/7 Led Zeppelin — so that when you tune it in, you know just what you're getting. Not so "Theme Time Radio Hour," which gives you what Mr. Dylan thinks you ought to get. Nor is his taste predictable: He likes nothing more than to throw musical curve balls, and if you don't like the song he's playing now, all you have to do is wait three minutes for the next one to come along.

To listen to "Theme Time Radio Hour" is to rediscover the sense of musical adventure that old-fashioned disc jockeys with strongly individual personalities offered in the days before big-money stations pinned their fiscal hopes to the rigid Top 40-style playlists that took the fun out of radio. Now that America's public-radio stations are abandoning musical programming in favor of news and talk, such shows have grown hard to find in many major markets. That's what makes satellite radio promising. Because it has so many different channels, it has room for everything — including unpredictability.

After listening to a few episodes of "Theme Time Radio Hour," it occurred to me that Mr. Dylan and Eddie Gorodetsky, his producer, had inadvertently come up with a model for other musical genres. Why not, say, a show hosted by the classical violinist Hilary Hahn, an articulate young woman whose musical tastes are as wide-ranging as Mr. Dylan's? Instead of reheating the same old casserole of drive-time leftovers, Ms. Hahn could dish up an eclectic stew of classical music, pop, bluegrass ... or whatever. That, after all, is the point of "Theme Time Radio Hour," which is dedicated to the admirable proposition that no well-rounded cultural diet is complete without a weekly dose of whatever.....................

Have a listen here to his riff on "Joe."

Have a listen live at 10 a.m. ET tomorrow (Wednesday, July 1) on XM satellite radio's Deep Tracks channel.
]]>
</description>
</item>
<item>
<title>
Laser Opto-Acoustic Imaging Technology from Seno Medical
</title> 
<link>
http://www.medgadget.com/archives/2008/07/laser_optoacoustic_imaging_technology_from_seno_medical.html
</link>
<pubDate>July 3, 2008, 2:42 pm</pubDate>
<description>
<![CDATA[

Here's what we know about the opto-acoustic imaging technology from Seno Medical Instruments, Inc., a San Antonio, Texas firm. A recent report on the wires says that there is a new research agreement between Seno Medical and two Canadian universities to study the company's first-ever commercially available opto-acoustic small animal imaging device. It turns out the technology, that utilizes the conversion of laser pulses into acoustic energy once the light hits tissue, can have profound consequences on development of future diagnostic imaging modalities for cancer and beyond.

The company explains its technology:

Laser opto-acoustic imaging technology combines optics and acoustics with a goal of improving the accuracy of the cancer diagnosis without the use of ionizing radiation (x-ray). The process starts by illuminating the breast with laser light of specific wavelengths. Tumors preferentially absorb the light over normal tissue and become slightly heated. A transient thermoelastic expansion causes a tumor to emit a pressure (acoustic) wave. This acoustic wave is then detected by an array of sensors positioned around the periphery of the breast held within the probe.

Signals from the sensors are analyzed and assembled into high contrast, high-resolution images that present the lesion in striking color. Because image contrast is related to both blood volume and oxygenation status, lesions may be correlated with benign or malignant histopathology. This is because malignant tumors possess increased microvasculature, but deplete oxygen from the blood at a higher rate than benign growths. Deoxygenated blood results in brighter images in the presence of a shorter wavelength than it does in the presence of a longer wavelength.

This technology has the merit of both the high contrast and spectral specificity of optical imaging and the sensitivity and resolution of ultrasonic imaging. It is more than just a combination of the two methods. The goal is to incorporate laser illumination and ultrasonic detection to achieve very high detection sensitivity.

Laser opto-acoustic imaging may permit the identification of tumors as small as 2 mm and has demonstrated the ability to see submillimeter structures. Early detection is important because biologically advanced tumors are more capable of metastasis.

Technology page @ Seno Medical: Laser Opto-Acoustic Imaging...

Press release: Seno Medical Instruments Launches First-Ever Commercially Available Opto-Acoustic Small Animal Imaging Research System...

Flashbacks: Optoacoustic Technology for Early Cancer Detection 




]]>
</description>
</item>
</channel>
</rss>
