Very Clear Illustration Regarding Phaco-Cataract Surgery

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This is a very brief article about cataract surgery where you can know the image the main steps applied in such surgeries. The illustration is made by Christine Cote, she is an MS in Biomedical Visualization.

Formation of cataract in the lens of the eye is one of the most common problems for many above 65 years old and it is increasing due to the fact that the numbers of people living more than 65 are increasing.

The formation of a cataract means that the lens is becoming opaque and vision will start to become blurry and will continue to be worse until almost nothing can be seen.

ElectroSurgical Unit Preventive Maintenance

After we have extensively introduced the function, modes, and uses of an Electro Surgical Unit we are going to mention in this article how to apply preventive maintenance to this machine and when to do so.

Different ESU Types

We are going to break this into a list and it going to be as follows:

1. According to the sample risk assessment sheet, an electrosurgical unit needs inspection for a thorough preventive maintenance procedure 2 times per year. During which you will test the performance of the electrosurgical unit. Extreme caution should be taken while inspecting an ESU as there are a high risk of getting an electric shock from direct or indirect (e.x: leakage) ways.
2. You will need to test many things in an ESU, among which you will need to test the power output and properties of the output signal. You will also need to make sure that output current A, the power (W), and the peak-to-peak voltage (V) to be accurate.
3. The power distribution test will evaluate the ESU output across various loads to make sure that the output is adjusted with varying impedance. Thus making sure that impedance sensing circuits in the ESU are working properly and delivering outputs that are accurate regardless of load variation. 
4. ESU testing must be applied we are going through more details on how to test the ESU later in this article.
5. High-Frequency leakage (RF leakage current should also be tested, as it is a critical parameter to measure as it may cause accidental burns in patients. 
6. Return Electrode Current Monitor (RECM) is an alarm circuit that alarms operator with a visual and audible alarm in case the ESU generator reaches a high threshold of the amount of current passing through the return electrode plates/pad.
7. In case an ESU has an inert gas flow* the flow and pressure of such inert gas need to be tested. 
8. Cleaning and dust removal of the inside of an ESU is important as cleaning and dust removal helps reduce heat accumulation in the machine.
9. Some ESU manufacturers recommend replacing fuses of an ESU every preventive maintenance check. Make sure that fuses that are going to be placed are having the same specifications of the ones removed. 
10. Cables inspection is important as they are moving and could be subject to rupture. It is highly recommended that you keep spare cables as these cables can be damaged at any time and once damaged you cannot use them anymore.
11. A resistivity test must be applied to electrodes, even if they should last for a very long time. But due to continuous use, their resistance increases with time. Also, it is recommended that you have spare electrodes, or at least when you find that the resistance increased substantially consider replacing them soon. (Note: Resistivity can reach a certain limit where the electrode will no longer function properly even if the maximum load is applied).
12. The electrical safety test procedure is highly recommended, this can be easily applied if you have an electrical safety analyzer.  

Fluke 87-V Digital Multi-meter

*Some ESUs have this option by which an inert gas is flowing and envelops the surgery sites that oxygen is eliminated at the surgery site, this allows for a faster healing incision that is neat and clean as lack of oxygen prevents tissue charring.

ESU testing

Say No To high Heels

High heels are among one of the most bone devastating things a woman would endure, she wears such shoes just for her to look taller or prettier, without gaining anything good in return.

 Actually, she would have many bone deformities from the tip of her fingers to her spinal cord. What is worst than that is most people are unaware of such a problem, but if you just ask a girl what is she going to do soon after she returns from a party, she might tell you that she would want to take her heels off!

Ventilator Preventive Maintenance

Ventilators or respirators are devices used to assist patients in ventilating their lungs. There are many things to be done for a ventilator during a Preventive Maintainance check-up. Most manufacturers recommend that a PPM be applied every 3 months of use. During which you will be prompted to do some or all of the following:

760 series Ventilators

• Inspect for any physical damage that might indicate mechanical damage. 



• Run a full performance check, where you will check all modes of operation of the ventilator



• Change the air intake filter.



• Verify that all audible and visual alarms are working properly.



• Inspect labels.



• If there is a cooling fan filter then it is recommended to be inspected and cleaned every month. If you are in a dusty area you might want to clean it more often.



• Some ventilators have an option to self-calibrate their oxygen sensor. This needs to be done often, daily or as needed.



• If the ventilator has a collector vial then it needs to be cleaned and disinfected. In most cases, the collector vial can be sent to the autoclave to disinfect it, daily or as needed. 



• Inspiratory and expiratory bacteria filters. If the filters are reusable then they should be autoclaved if they are disposable they should be replaced after every patient. If the same patient stays connected to a ventilator for a long period of time usually more than 15 days. The filters should be autoclaved or replaced whichever case is applicable or after a circuit change. You can check filter resistance in many types of ventilators. By referring to the operation manual you will get instructions on what to do when the filter resistance increases above a certain level? 



• Check if the battery is charging and that it is fully charged after long charge times. Usually, it is recommended to change a ventilator battery every year. You can refer to the user/service manual of your ventilator to follow manufacturer recommendations.

Top 4 Biomedical Engineering Colleges in CANADA

Studying BME in Canada

In case you want to know more about BME you might want to see the link provided and then you can come here and look at the list of top colleges in Canada for Biomedical engineering.

There are 21 colleges that have BME program in Canada, and here is our list of top 4 universities in Canada to enroll for a BME program:

1- Carleton University

In Carleton university, you will be able to not only have a biomedical engineering certificate but you can specialize in Data Science, bioinformatics or clinical engineering.

2- University of British Columbia

In UBC university you will give you the option to be an electrical engineer with biomedical engineering specialty. They also provide the Co-Op option to their students.

Top 4 Biomedical Engineering Colleges in USA

BME

First of all if you are here because you want to know more about biomedical engineering then you might want to visit the article related to that. That said we can continue with our list of colleges from around the world that teach biomedical engineer in their campuses.

You might be surprised that many universities don't have a biomedical engineering program, so it is not a good idea to go look for any universities if you want to enroll in a BME program.

There are many well known and very well respected universities that tech biomedical engineering in USA but we have a list of 4 universities where you get top rank certificate.

1- The Johns Hopkins University of Baltimore

It was founded in 1876, but history is not all it is ranking as top 1 in biomedical engineering and the top 12th university in USA

2-  Duke University

Located in Durham, North Carolina, Duke University is the second in our list, and they have "Over two-thirds of biomedical engineering undergraduates are involved in independent study research projects" so this would give students good experience during their learning life. 

Open Upright MRI: Good Step Forward

Vertically open MRI 

Since its invention MRI machines were huge in size, making many patients fear entering such machines. The worst part is that not only the patient has to enter a hole in the middle of the machine, she is required to stay still for a minimum of 15 minutes. During which she will be hearing noises from the machine, this was at times best quality patient care service. But things have to move forward and as MRI machines are serving more patients, MRI machines have to be improved.

Now and thanks to many technological advancements the conception of open horizontal MRIs was possible then lately we saw the conception of open vertical MRIs. Of course there is a compromised magnet power which is usually far less than that of a conventional "mammoth-sized" MRIs but in many cases this is an acceptable compromise.

Pneumatic Tube System Once Science Fiction Now a Reality

Have you ever seen a science fiction movie where they send items using capsules that travel from one room to another? If you did then be aware that now such "Fiction" is a reality!

Where now patient samples (blood, urine, drugs & etc) can be sent using capsules that travel very fast from the nurse station to the laboratory where it needs to be analyzed. Such system is used in many other applications in various industries but we are concerned about its use in the medical field, where in many cases it can be life-saving.

Dialyzers Sterilized With Ethylene Oxide Are Fatal

Kidney failure is one of the most spreading diseases, it has many causes and in the US there are about 26 million adults who have a kidney disease. There are 661 thousand Americans who are diagnosed with total kidney failure, Because it is impossible to provide for a kidney transplant for all these numbers, they are going to apply for dialysis as around 468 thousand are undergoing dialysis.

Those who are treated with dialysis suffer from many things as they have to regulate their diets as they cannot consume food with high phosphorus like bananas, they will have 3 sessions a week for about 4 hours each to apply for dialysis. Their entire lifestyle will be altered.

Helium Depletion Could Lead to Medical Crisis

Yes, the world is running out of Helium! and the worst thing is that it not an issue that is known to people around the world. Helium is used in many medical devices but MRI is one of the medical equipment that can be rendered useless without Helium as it used in the cooling process of the MRI super-magnet that must reach a near absolute zero temperature in order for the magnet to be able to have its high magnetization effect.

If the magnet's temperature increases, this damages the permanent magnet and thus can lead to have an MRI that is useless. Of course current MRI engineers are opting to use less Liquid Helium per hour. Furthermore there are studies that might replace the use of NbTi by MgB2 that needs less temperatures than the used magnet. But still this is not commercially used and Helium prices are rising and the supply is becoming more scarce.

Why is the world not looking at the issue as a problem that needs to be solved?

Do-It-Yourself: Micro-controller based Infra Red Fingertip Heart Rate Monitor

This could be a fun way for a would-be a biomedical technician or engineer to get used to getting signals from the human body and to filter amplify and then measure them. It is not the simplest thing to do so don't start with this project if you are a first-timer.

What is really good about such project is that you can test your creativity due to the many things that can be changed and altered from what is there in the first place, even the author of this great DIY project had done some changes to improve performance.

So what you can do is that for example use another MCU, add an LCD or add a buzzer that will trigger if too low or too high BPM are measured. You might as well want to make it on a PCB or have it done in a very small casing that can be portable.

We recommend you to have a look at this nice infrared microcontroller-based fingertip heart rate monitor project and to try and do different things with it.

For any ideas or thought please comment below!

Samsung's Portable CT Scanner: A Great Potential

Samsung is well known nowadays for its android mobile phones but that is just the tip of the iceberg, samsung has shown interest in the medical field since it first opened the Samsung medical center in 1994, in fact samsung has a medical device company established a long time before that in 1985 they established the Medison. 

But when do things get really interesting with samsung in the medical field is when they acquired NeuroLogica in 2013, as it is a medical imaging company that introduced portable CT scanners the BodyTom and the CereTom and you are advised to watch the video below to have a better idea about these two wonderful innovations. 

The inside of a CT Scanner is Surprising

Many people are afraid of MRI just because they feel the seclusion and hear voices of the magnetic gradient that are pretty noisy by the way. A claustrophobic person might never be able to enter the MRI chamber, that led to the emergence of many although less powerful but opened MRI machines. 

I ask why people are not of the CT scanner?

Where if it was seen from the inside it will be looking like a big machine that spines in hyper speeds around the patient's head or body, but the answer to my question is simple they don't see the machine they see its cover and it looks rather appealing from the outside, and no one imagines that it looks or does what it does. 

I have seen surprise impressions on the faces of many regular people how were describing their feelings in MRI, that were generally full of fear and bad mood, compared to their good relaxed feelings when speaking about how they felt after they did a CT scan. 

This is how the same CT scanner looks when closed 

Where when a CT scanner, when opened, the look is pretty much less peaceful, if you know what I mean!

Service Manuals for Biomedical Engineers

Many people think that a biomedical engineer/technician must know everything, well this is not the case.


As you might not be aware there are different medical equipment that has various functions. Thus they will have different designs and will be engineered in different ways in relation to their function.

GE Field Service Engineering

So what can a bio-medical engineer do?

Simply she will need to have service and operation manuals in her hands. That will aid her and helps her diagnose various problems. Often prevent malfunctions and downtime of the machines. Just by applying the recommended Preventive Maintenance procedures.


Yes, preventive maintenance is one of the most important tasks that are done by a biomedical engineer. That leads us to the most important question. Does a bio-medical engineer has all the manuals she needs?

Spinal Cord Injury: Biomedical Point of View

Spinal cord injury is one of the most dangerous kinds of injuries, you might ask why?

Simply nervous cells are not able to heal and form scar tissues that will hinder the function of signal transmission, this leads to paralysis in certain parts of the body.

If you think of the spinal cord as a cable that is used to transmit "Data" from the brain to different parts of the body then if a certain injury occurs and some of the "wires" are cut then certain parts of the body will be no longer able to receive this "data" from the brain.

Now let us take a very fast look at the vertebral column that in cases and protects the spinal cord.

What is Biomedical Engineering & Who is the Biomedical Engineer

Well, this post is mainly for anyone that wants to apply or has the curiosity to know more about biomedical engineering.

Sometimes, biomedical engineering students might feel that they don't actually know what is their major, this feeling is true to a certain extent as in many cases and due to the vast variety of the domain, students might feel they have no idea about their major.

In this article, we will try to introduce students to their domain, so that they will know what and why they need to study so that they can keep focused.