AUDIOLOGY patients will be able to get the most out of their hearing aids with the launch of a new technology package for NHS trusts across the UK. Siemens Hearing Instruments has this week announced the availability of AutoFit, a service available on the latest upgrade of the company’s audiology fitting software, CONNEXX 6.3. AutoFit combines an accurate fitting solution for patients and a more-streamlined workflow for audiologists, automatically adjusting the frequency response of a hearing instrument in order to achieve an exact match to the prescriptive gain targets obtained from the patient during Real Ear Measurements (REM) and 2cc measurements. “Autofit offers an accurate and efficient fitting solution and will improve workflow during the fitting process in NHS audiology departments by releasing up to 10 minutes from a patient’s assessment journey,” explained Matt Norgate, NHS product manager at Siemens. “It works with Siemens’ FirstFit solution, offering ease of use for audiologists as they will not require additional training on the software. With time released from programming and fitting, audiologists can now spend more time talking to patients, explaining their new hearing instruments and the technologies available.”

 

CANON has this week launched the third addition to its range of XEED projectors designed to provide crystal-clear medical imaging quality. The XEED SX7 Mark II Medical joins the XEED WUX10 and the XEED SX80 to provide an out-of-the-box solution for unrivalled display of digital X-ray images. The latest model features an ultra-bright 4000 lumens image with native SXGA+ resolution (1400 x 1050 pixels) and a 1000:1 contrast ratio for rich blacks and smooth greyscale gradation. It weighs just 4.8kg, making it portable and perfect for displaying case studies at medical conferences or lectures. The entire range can also be used with the AcuScreenPRO system to offer precise calibration by optimising the projected image according to the unique ambient conditions of a particular environment.

 

AN in vitro protein expression system has been launched by Thermo Fisher Scientific that improves post-translational modification of proteins. The Pierce In Vitro Glycoprotein Expression Kit synthesises and accurately glycosylates protein in vitro at much higher efficiencies than currently-available methods. The reaction requires only 90 minutes and does not rely on other components such as microsomal membranes. When glycosylation in not necessary, the Pierce In Vitro Protein Expression Kit is available. Both can be used with DNA or RNA templates and contain sufficient reagents for 50 reactions. Smaller, introductory-sized versions are also available with sufficient reagents for 10 reactions.

 

Copley Scientific has launched a new NGI dissolution cup and membrane holder

COPLEY Scientific has launched the world’s-first commercially available apparatus designed specifically for dissolution testing of inhaled drug formations. Based on a concept developed by Professor Jason McConville and his team from the College of Pharmacy at the University of Texas, a new NGI dissolution cup and membrane holder enables dissolution testing of size-fractionated particles selected from the emitted dose. Simple to use and employing analytical methodology based on established pharmacopoeial techniques for transdermal patches, it provides information that allows developers to more closely tailor inhaled drug delivery A company spokesman said: “Dissolution testing is widely applied in the development and manufacture of oral dosage forms, but is not yet in widespread use for inhaled products, where the prime focus is successful deposition in the lung. Currently there are no official dissolution test methods for inhaled products. However, increasing use of the pulmonary route to deliver larger molecules and/or systemic therapies means growing emphasis on the rate of active pharmaceutical ingredient dissolution. Dissolution information allows the development of more-sophisticated inhalation products with delayed release characteristics and/or more closely-controlled drug delivery profiles.”

 

LUTON and Dunstable Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is installing InterSystems’ Ensembleas part of an extensive project to rationalise its IT architecture and implement a strategic approach to application integration. The project covers approximately 50 critical applications accessed by 3,000 users including A&E, patient administration, pathology and electronic observations. The trust decided to improve the structure as it anticipates major changes to its application portfolio over the coming years and wanted enough flexibility to meet any challenges. The implementation will be carried out by Integrella, an InterSystems partner, over four phases running for 12 months. Marcus Davies of Integrella said: “We have seen a common theme in NHS trust IT departments to reduce the reliance on tightly-integrated vendor systems and increase IT agility.” Mark England, head of IT and the trust, added: “We are not unusual as an organisation in that our IT systems have grown and evolved over the years into quite a complex beast. A mixture of legacy systems and highly-critical patient applications meant we needed an integration platform that could help us create a flexible architecture to ensure we can easily adapt to the changing nature of healthcare IT in the future.”

 

ALSO IN THE NEWS: The Whitegate Health Centre in Blackpool has installed a MAGNETOM Avanto 1.5 Tesla MRI from Siemens Healthcare…