[ad_1] The study estimates that annual microplastic consumption ranges from 39,000 to 52,000 particles, from food sources alone. When you factor in the microplastics Americans inhale, the numbers jump to 74,000 and 121,000. Americans who drink exclusively from plastic water bottles may be ingesting an additional 90,000 microplastics annually, which at the very least should […]
Category: medicine
Researchers hope a blood test can reveal early signs of cancer
[ad_1] Initial studies for CancerSEEK have been promising, but scientists say there’s plenty of room for improvement. A retrospective study published in Science in 2018 of over 1000 patients with early-stage tumors revealed that CancerSEEK yielded a positive result about 70 percent of the time. CancerSEEK worked especially well for ovarian and liver cancers, with […]
Apple Watch ECG is coming to Canada ‘as quickly as possible’
[ad_1] Apple has so far been content to bring the feature to more countries through minor software updates, like watchOS 5.2 in March and 5.2.1 earlier in May. The technology typically requires approval on a country-by-country basis due to the medical implications. It’s meant to detect atrial fibrillation, and officials typically want to ensure that […]
Apple reportedly buys asthma-monitoring startup
[ad_1] Apple has snapped up a company called Tueo Health, which was working on an app to help parents monitor asthma symptoms of their sleeping kids, according to CNBC. The startup’s CEO and chief operating officer switched their employer to Apple on LinkedIn late last year, which is when the deal seems to have closed. […]
Comcast is working on a health-focused smart speaker
[ad_1] While it clearly wouldn’t be running a sophisticated voice assistant like Alexa or Google Assistant, it would have a “personality.” Comcast would pitch it to seniors, people with disabilities and others who have health concerns but want to remain independent. The cable giant has reportedly talked to multiple large hospitals about using these speakers […]
The fight against childhood blindness could lead to eagle-eyed robots
[ad_1] Each year, around four in 10,000 children worldwide are born with congenital cataract (CC), a rare occurrence by WHO standards, yet the condition accounts for as much as 20 percent of childhood blindness cases. CC is treatable with simple corrective surgery but in parts of the world where medical facilities are few and far […]
Google trained its AI to predict lung cancer
[ad_1] To screen for lung cancer, radiologists typically view hundreds of images from a single CT scan. With this new AI model, Google can generate an overall lung cancer malignancy prediction and identify subtle malignant tissue, or lung nodules, which are often difficult to see. The AI also factors in previous scans, which can help […]
Facebook used its AI smarts to build detailed disease prevention maps
[ad_1] These maps, Facebook suggests, could help health organizations better determine how to handle outbreaks or distribute supplies because they’ll provide insights on where people live and move and whether they are connected. Groups such as the American Red Cross are already using them to determine areas in which people are concentrated and coordinate health […]
Twitter will direct vaccine-related searches to ‘a credible’ source
[ad_1] “We’re committed to protecting the health of the public conversation on Twitter — ensuring individuals can find information from authoritative sources is a key part of that mission,” the company said. Twitter will also block auto-suggestions for queries that might lead to anti-vax commentary and information. For now, the new search prompt can be […]
Gene-modified viruses rescue patient from drug-resistant ‘superbug’
[ad_1] The team found three bacteriophages that could be useful (including one from a rotting eggplant) and modified them to maximize their ability to target and wipe out the bacteria strain. Once this was ready, they gave the teen twice-daily infusions as well as surface treatments on the skin lesions resulting from the infection. The […]