21.11.2024
Researchers led by Xiaoguang Dong, assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Vanderbilt University, have developed artificial cilia to monitor mucus conditions in human airways.31.10.2024
The diagnosis and assessment of lung diseases often presents medical professionals with major challenges. Traditional methods such as computed tomography (CT) offer detailed structural images of the lungs, but involve radiation exposure for patients and provide no information on regional lung function.25.10.2024
A project, funded by the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) with an initial $2.4 million grant, aims to model the lung-brain connection and develop new therapeutic drugs to prevent and treat neurological symptoms, such as brain fog, associated with viral infections.10.10.2024
Dr. Jan Middeke and Dr. Jan-Niklas Eckardt from Dresden University Hospital have received an award from the German Society for Clinical Chemistry and Laboratory Medicine (DGKL) for their work on improving leukaemia diagnostics using artificial intelligence (AI). The award, worth 15,000 euros, recognizes their research into AI-assisted detection of leukaemia in the bone marrow.16.09.2024
A new AI-based digital platform, developed by a research team at the University Hospital of Cologne, enables rapid and precise analysis of lung cancer tissue sections. The platform, which is based on advanced algorithms, could significantly improve the quality of diagnostics and provide new insights into the treatment of lung cancer.29.08.2024
Researchers at the Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Lung Center, have discovered a biomarker that can predict the risk of nerve disease during tuberculosis therapy.16.05.2024
The new sensor from Fraunhofer IPM measures the oxygen content in the air we breathe precisely and quickly, which significantly improves patient monitoring.26.03.2024
Imagine that your smartphone, your constant companion in everyday life, could now give you valuable insights into your health – and all you have to do is breathe. The start-up VoiceMed makes it possible.20.12.2023
Associate Professor Dr Jonas Schupp receives funding for his research into chronic lung diseases.07.11.2023
There is a low-cost way for you to protect yourself and reduce your risk of respiratory diseases such as flu, RSV, and COVID-19. Build yourself a Corsi-Rosenthal box (CR box) in 30 minutes with just $60 worth of common hardware store supplies.25.10.2023
A researcher team from Ecole Polytechnique Federal de Lausanne led by Dr. Vivek Thacker now group leader at the Department of Infectious Diseases at Heidelberg University Hospital have studied why tuberculosis bacteria form long strands and how this affects their infectivity.23.10.2023
For people with respiratory diseases, breathing can be a challenge. Breathment, a start-up from Munich, wants to change that. With their app, they want to help COPD patients with rehabilitation and disease management.27.09.2023
The MHH Children's Hospital is participating in a nationwide project to better predict individual disease courses in non-infectious lung diseases using standardised data from health care and environmental data.14.09.2023
Dr. Anne Hilgendorff’s team from Helmholtz Munich and the LMU University Hospital developed a non-invasive method with no need for sedation using MR imaging to detect early signs of vascular disease associated with chronic pulmonary impairment in premature infants, offering new avenues for risk stratification and potential prevention of complications later in life.14.08.2023
Aspergillus fumigatus strains that infect humans have a significantly altered metabolism compared to other strains in the environment. At the same time, infection with the fungus leads to an apparent change in the human lung microbiome.09.08.2023
Robinder Khemani, MD, MsCI, Attending Physician in Pediatric Intensive Care at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, is using machine learning to improve the outcomes of children put on ventilators.27.06.2023
Researchers of the University of Barcelona and the Institute of Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) have identified new biomarkers for non-small cell lung cancer, the most common lung cancer.21.06.2023
Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) have developed a novel method to place biofilms on lung cells in the laboratory. The model system produced by means of "bioprinting" should help to better understand infection processes and assist in the development of new active substances.20.06.2023
The University Hospital of Bonn (UKB) is the first hospital in the world to examine and monitor children receiving ECMO therapy with a mobile magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. This was possible thanks to a funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.15.06.2023
Can a human organ be mapped on a single-cell level to learn more about each individual cell? And can we learn how different these cells are from person to person? Helmholtz Munich researchers and their collaborators have taken up this challenge and developed the Human Lung Cell Atlas using artificial intelligence (AI)-based techniques.13.06.2023
We know from previous studies that changes in the lung microbiome are associated with diseases such as cystic fibrosis, asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Environmental factors such as smoking, nutrition in infancy or the use of antibiotics are important factors for the composition and stability of the microbial community in the lung.09.05.2023
Researchers have designed a new stem cell model to study congenital diaphragmatic hernia in newborns with underdeveloped lungs. They were able to isolate stem cells from the fluid that is suctioned from the baby’s lungs and normally gets discarded and use them as a foundation for the model.19.04.2023
A novel robotic bronchoscope system can non-intrusively access the area of interest within the lung for minimally invasive pulmonary lesions sampling, the gold standard of lung cancer diagnoses.13.04.2023
The neonatology team at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) has conducted the world's first study of children receiving ECMO therapy using the mobile magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The procedure, known as extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), involves oxygenating the blood outside the body.28.03.2023
Imaging reaches its limits when it comes to looking at the lungs: Alveoli are tiny, balloon-shaped air sacs in our lungs. These tissue structures are micrometers in diameter and currently cannot be visualized directly. Meanwhile, they exhibit early changes prompted by lung diseases such as COVID-19. Dark-field X-ray images could visualize these signs in the future.15.03.2023
Congenital diaphragmatic hernia is one of the deadliest birth defects. To better understand and treat this condition in the future, an international team of researchers involving Leipzig University Hospital designed a new cell model in the laboratory and tested a drug therapy on it.24.02.2023
An imaging process that today is used mainly in research labs could potentially detect early-stage lung disease if developed for use in hospitals and clinics, a new research study shows.16.02.2023
A team led by Prof Claus-Michael Lehr of the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) has developed a novel human lung cell line that should enable much more accurate predictions of the behavior of active substances or dosage forms in humans than previous systems.21.12.2022
Researchers from the GSI Helmholtzzentrum für Schwerionenforschung now have proven in a paper published in the “International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health” that face masks - both FFP2 and surgical masks - strongly reduce lung exposure and thus the dose.08.04.2022
Does wearing a mask diminish athletic performance? Do we fatigue faster while wearing a face mask during exercise? Our subjective perception might suggest that a mask or face covering restricts us. A study by the University of Wuppertal explored the physiological effects of wearing KN95 or FFP2 (European Union standard) face masks.01.04.2022
When they are presented with respiratory disease, physicians listen to the lungs and airways to assess the sound of the patient’s breath and cough. Artificial intelligence now helps patients with respiratory diseases even outside of the doctor’s office: "ResGuard Med" monitors coughing during the night, detects the worsening of symptoms and issues an alert.03.01.2022
Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is often a last resort treatment for patients with acute respiratory failure. The method uses an external pump to circulate blood through an artificial lung back into the bloodstream. However, the use of ECMO for long-term support is not possible for patients with chronic respiratory failure.03.01.2022
Patients waiting for a donor organ must have a lot of patience and a bit of luck. Aging and a rise in chronic disease prevalence means the need for donor organs is much greater than the number that is available. To help those who need organ transplants, scientists must create new technologies.05.11.2021
When the coronavirus enters the lung, it causes massive tissue damage. Now, an international research team has been able to demonstrate for the first time, using a highly innovative X-ray technique in a non-destructive manner, that severe COVID-19 causes massive remodelling of the finest blood vessels by causing normally separate blood systems to join together with unusual frequency.25.05.2021
Diseases can affect the lungs in different ways that can be challenging. If the lungs are badly damaged and artificial ventilation (also called artificial respiration) is no longer effective, an ECMO machine comes into play. Right now, artificial lungs reside outside the body and cannot be implanted.13.01.2021
A rapid, evidence-based review summarizes the effectiveness of cloth masks in protecting health care clinicians from respiratory viral infections, such as COVID-19. Nine studies were included in the review, and all but one were conducted prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.11.01.2021
Today, managing one's own chronic disease is hardly possible without digital helpers – not least because of the corona pandemic. People with asthma also benefit from apps and wearables. They help patients connect better with doctors and better understand their own disease. Our Topic of the Month looks at why this is so important and what the digital services can do.11.01.2021
According to the WHO, around 600 million people worldwide suffer from chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma. Key in the fight against these diseases is therapy adherence, but many sufferers often find this difficult. The result is increased hospitalization, which ultimately comes at the expense of the healthcare system. Smart and mobile technologies could change that.01.01.2021
Allergic asthma is a chronic disease that makes regular monitoring essential to keep it under control. This is the only way to determine whether the prescribed medication is effective or whether the patient needs a treatment adjustment. Vivatmo me is a breath analyzer device for home use and helps keep asthma patients safe and confident between visits to the doctor.08.12.2020
Our bodies constantly make sounds that are not always audible to the naked ear. The occurrence of certain noises or changes in normal sounds can be an indication of illness. Using the example of the lung, a research team at Graz University of Technology has been intensively engaged in noise recording and the development of computer-aided analysis methods as a supplement to medical diagnosis.27.04.2020
The coronavirus is pushing healthcare systems worldwide to their limits. The number of infections continues to rise – and with it the number of people who need intensive medical treatment and artificial respiration. However, the number of ventilators is limited. Solutions to support intensive care units are needed – quickly. We have taken a closer look at some of them.31.03.2020
Besides hand hygiene, drinking water hygiene is also on the to-do list of every hospital. A lot of money is invested to clean water pipes and to destroy legionella germs. An alternative solution for mechanical and thermal control is water disinfection using an automatic machine.14.11.2019
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a life-threatening illness in which the lungs are severely damaged. The condition always requires intensive medical care through mechanical ventilation. But not all lungs are the same. To ensure a personalized treatment that is adapted to the individual patient’s lung volume and condition, Ebenbuild relies on digital twins.02.09.2019
Artificial intelligence is no longer a dream of the future in medicine. Many studies and initial application examples show that it sometimes achieves better results than human physicians. At Jena University Hospital, the work with AI is already lived practice. It is the first institution in the world to use algorithms in radiological routine to reconstruct CT images.01.08.2019
The medical devices value chain has gaps between academic research and industrial practice that slow down innovation processes. This also applies to time-sensitive and urgently needed products such as rapid diagnostic tests to identify resistant pathogens. At the InfectoGnostics Research Campus in Jena, partners from research and medicine team up to close these gaps.23.04.2019
According to WHO, about 251 million people worldwide had Chronic Obstructive Pumonary Disease in 2016. COPD denotes not a single, but several diseases that are caused by smoking and air pollution, among others. Patients at a later disease stage often need ventilation and are thus bound to the location of their devices.01.03.2019
COPD affects more than 200 million people in the world. Those affected by this chronic pulmonary disease are often slow to notice the symptoms and get a medical diagnosis. This results in secondary complications and high medical costs. That's why an early diagnosis, comprehensive treatment, and frequent monitoring are very important. Various devices and tools support this all-round care.01.03.2019
People suffering from lung disease temporarily need ventilator support because they are unable to breathe naturally. Mechanical ventilation is designed to ensure the survival of these patients. The goal is to adapt the ventilator settings and tailor them the patient's specific needs and prevent lung tissue damage.01.03.2019
Coughing, airway obstruction, difficulty breathing: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is an umbrella term used to describe progressive and currently incurable lung diseases. The innovative solutions of Philips Respironics help patients to manage each stage of the disease and their medication intake, train the respiratory system and provide respiratory support.01.03.2019
COPD is considered the third most common cause of death worldwide and mainly affects smokers. It is not curable, but with the right combination of early diagnosis, therapy and self-management, a significant part of the quality of life can be regained. The comprehensive care is supported by various devices and technical tools. Learn more about the all-round care of COPD in our Topic of the Month.22.02.2019
According to the WHO, ten percent of babies worldwide are born prematurely. Since most organs of these tiny babies have not fully developed yet, it can quickly lead to complications and disorders and most notably affect the lungs of the premature infants. What's more, infections require gentle treatment, as the preemies themselves are fragile and susceptible – making this a challenging situation.