Customizing cardiac implants

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While conducting research for this week’s assignment regarding the newest cardiovascular technology, I came across this great article discussing heart implants and them being “tailor-made” (Bourzac, 2014). Current cardiac implants, such as pacemakers and defibrillators, are not custom made as they are basically “one size fits all” (Bourzac, 2014, para. 1). The article discusses researchers who have created a personalized heart sensor using a 3-D printer and their utilization of a stretchy material to create a perfect fit that would increase the level of monitoring and treatment of cardiac implants (Bourzac, 2014). The stretchy material would increase the effectiveness of oxygen monitoring, strain gauges, electrodes, and temperature monitoring as it would be customized to the person’s heart (Bourzac, 2014). An interesting concept presented in the article is the idea of sensors being placed on cardiac implants that could measure acidic conditions (Bourzac, 2014). In addition, light sensors could be placed on this stretchy material and would “provide information about heart-tissue health by identifying areas with poorly oxygenated blood, which is less transparent to light,” and could ultimately identify the occurrence of a myocardial infarction (Bourzac, 2014, para. 5). I think any time we are able to customize a treatment, we are able to better serve our patients and this concept of 3-D printing will most certainly contribute to higher quality patient care.

References:

Bourzac, K. (2014). Heart Implants, 3-D- – Printed to Order. Retrieved from:http://www.technologyreview.com/news/525221/heart-implants-3-d-printed-to-  order/

LEAP Statement of Ethics

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LEAP Mission Statement:

The Leaders in Education Awareness Program facilitates the college exploration process for elementary and middle school students by teaching students the basic foundation of higher education through interactive workshops and providing engaging tours of CI. In addition LEAP volunteers serve as leaders for visiting students and the campus community.

What is LEAP?

It is a student leadership program within University Outreach that seeks to develop both social and personal dimensions of each student leader in a team setting. These students are committed to social justice and embody a spirit of volunteerism.

I felt I could not give a Statement of Ethics without providing some background information about the peer group I belong to, alongside my coordinator, and peer, we came up with this Statement of Ethics for LEAP, explaining what we do and why we do, while using the mission and the definition of LEAP as the base/foundation for this statement:

In an effort to give back to the CI community, we abide by these ethics.

*Always create a positive environment/safe zone, for not only the children that we serve every Friday, but for our team as well. Try to make a big effort not to make someone uncomfortable.

*Impartiality, because by having so many students on campus, you never want to just favor one student or group that comes for a campus visit, to be fair minded of all students.

*Be a positive role model at all times, do not say inappropriate things in front of campus visitors, because that is not positive and people will think badly of you.

*Respect, constructive criticism is implemented a lot in LEAP, even if you do not always agree, you always must main professionalism and respect to what the other person is telling you, and instead of taking the wrong way, the the critique and internalize it for the future.

*Have patience,  not all groups that we serve are the easiest, some are more louder than others. Learning to have patience with the kids will go back to being a positive role model and creating a positive environment.

*Be the person you would want to look up to (if you were in middle school), this is just what it sounds like, if you were in middle school, what qualities would look for in a person? If you think that you yourself do not have these qualities, then the students you serve will notice that as well, you are your own best critique, use that as a tool to better yourself, so that someone else will want to say “I want to be like you when I grow up.”

New Heart Failure Drug Possibly on the Horizon?

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Novartis, a company that develops drugs and vaccines has just been granted an FDA priority review of a new heart failure drug called LCZ696. The company is well known worldwide for the manufacture of drugs such as clozapine, valsatan and methylphenidate. This new drug, LCZ696, has its final FDA action date in August of 2015 and has received accelerated assessment in the European Union. The drug will be dosed twice daily and will work by strengthening protective neurohormonal systems of the heart while also reduces harmful effects of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. This new drug is predicted to reduce the risk of cardiovascular-related deaths by approximately 20%.

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A study was conducted by Novartis and overseen by an executive committee, an independent data and safety committee. The trial consisted of three phases where informed patients who were 18 years of age, had New York Heart Association class II, III or IV symptoms, ejection fraction of less than 35% and required to have a plasma B-type natriuretic peptide level of at least 150 pg per milliliter. The first phase consisted of patients receiving enalapril (an ACE inhibitor), a single-blind run in which all patients then received LCZ696 and then a double-blind treatment in the two study groups. A total of 10,521 patients in 1043 centers in 47 countries were recorded with 4187 patients going into the actual trials. Death from cardiovascular causes or hospitalization for heart failure occurred in 914 (21.8% of patients in the LCZ696) & 1117 (26.% of patients in the enalapril) patients. LCZ696 reduced the risk of hospitalization from heart failure by 21% (P<0.001) and had higher proportions of patients with hypotension, nonserious angioedema but lower proportions with renal impairment, hyperkalemia and cough than the enalapril group.

I thought that this article was really interesting to know what kind of new drug could be appearing in hospitals in the future. It is great that this shows some improvement than the ACE inhibitor it was compared against in this very large, multi-continental study. I wonder what will happen with the FDA later this year and if this drug will be on the market in the United States in the near future. I also wonder what those implications will be for those with heart failure and the different side effects that nursing will manage if this drug does come onto the market.

Sources:

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1409077#t=articleBackground

http://www.bidnessetc.com/34902-novartis-ag-adr-heart-failure-drug-granted-fda-priority-review/

Protected: New Treatment for High Cholesterol

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3-D Printing

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In the article “Heart Implants, 3-D – Printed to Order” by Katherine Bourzac, Bourzac (2014) discusses how the science community has advanced to where they are experimenting with 3-D printing to enhance treatment of heart conditions. Scientists have recently used a 3-D printer in conjunction with various cardiac images to produce a 3-D replica of the desired heart (Bourzac, 2014). Using this replica heart, scientists are working on creating thin wrinkle-free sheets incorporated with greater sensing capabilities that will cover the individual’s heart to enhance monitoring (Bourzac, 2014).

It’s inspiring to witness how far science is coming in regards to the advancement of medicine. I greatly feel that the use of 3-D printing will enhance patient care because it will enable doctors to specialize equipment and treatment to the individual, allowing the necessary equipment to better fit within the individual anatomy and ensure that all anatomical areas are addressed. Additionally, as Bourzac (2014) explained, current implanted defibrillators only use a couple electrodes to monitor heart rhythm and could potentially make the wrong decision to shock the patient because of only two monitoring sites. With the use of sheets filled with sensors, hardware such as the defibrillator will receive input from many sites around the entire heart. This will allow more precise treatment that is based on feedback from the entire heart and not just certain aspects of it.

Overall, I think the potential of these scientific advances is astronomical to medicine. Although much can be determined about a patient’s heart from various medical tests and scans, creating a 3-D version of the heart to test theories and equipment and applying additional, individualized sensors on the heart takes more of the guesswork out of the treatment. Patients receiving this form of care will hopefully benefit greatly from this scientific breakthrough.

References:

Bourzac, K. (2014). Heart Implants, 3-D- – Printed to Order. Retrieved from:

http://www.technologyreview.com/news/525221/heart-implants-3-d-printed-to-  order/

Advances in Technology Related to Cardiovascular Health

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Article: 2015 to ring in advances in prevention, interventional procedures, heart repair

The article highlighted on a couple different areas related to advancements in cardiovascular health in the 2015 year. One of the areas highlighted on wearable technologies such as watches with heart rate monitors (Polar, Garmin, Fitbit). Although some of these products have been around for several years, its use within the health care setting is minimal. The article discusses how wearable technology will allow individuals to monitor their health outside of the physician’s office. Apple for example has recently created a watch that can measure pulse rate and use sensors to track the duration and type of exercise being done. Paired with an app, the individual can combine various wearable devices and share it with their physician.

Personally, I own a TomTom GPS watch that can track my heart rate, calories, pace, and distance when I run. Additionally, I have a Fitbit that tracks the amount of steps I take, the calories I burn throughout the day, and it also allows me to track the food I have eaten. I think that these devices should be promoted by physicians. These wearable technologies don’t track everything about an individual’s health, but it can be a useful tool during a doctor’s visit. It provides insight into how much activity an individual participates in each week, what their diet may look like, how their heart rate is when they are exercising. It provides a wealth of health information as well as allows individuals to keep track of their progress and goals they set for themselves.

Reference:

American College of Cardiology. (2014). 2015 to ring in advances in prevention, interventional procedures, heart repair. Eurekalert. Retrieved from http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-12/acoc-2tr122214.php

Polar Heart Rate Monitor

 

Meet a SURFer: Esmeralda Carretero

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Undergraduate research is shown to be particularly effective among first-generation college students. Esmeralda Carretero is the first person in her family to attend college. Her research is combined with community action. Take a moment to get to know her.

Esmeralda Carreterro

Esmeralda Carretero is a Liberal Studies Major, emphasizing in bilingual education at CSU Channel Islands.

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Brick Poster

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https://docs.google.com/document/d/1-20CotnxL5h9brM_Wf1hIZcRwvN0x7CgXNiHXPUM1co/pub

Brick Poster

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Advancements In Cardiovascular Technology: Wireless Monitoring of Heart Rhythms

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heart-patch-patientDoctors from Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla conducted on the validity of using a Zio Patch to monitor heart rhythms on emergency room patients who may have a possible arrhythmia. A Zio patch is a wireless, ambulatory cardiac monitor that adheres to the skin for 14 days. The purpose of this study was to improve patient care and a way for emergency room patients to avoid unnecessary follow-up care, but also it’s a way to detect patients who have a dangerous arrhythmia in a comfortable manner and is less invasive. Of the 285 patients from Scripps, Stanford Hospital and Scott & White Memorial Hospital in Temple, Texas who entered the emergency rooms with possible arrhythmia signs and symptoms were given a Zio Patch. After the Zio patch is no longer adhering to the skin then patient’s were instructed to mail it back with a prepaid envelope given to them. The doctor would then study the data and follow up on patients who had threatening or different types of arrhythmia. It is also compared to the Holter monitor which is a wired, cardiac monitor; however, it limits the things and is uncomfortable for patients. Furthermore, the Zio Patch is able detect arrhythmia better than a Holter monitor.

The advancements in cardiovascular technology alone is amazing. I did not only look at this website, but others as well from fellow classmates and it is amazing to see how far we are coming. I think that using technology to improve patient care and outcome is important as long as we do not forget to continue to see our patients as humans and not machines. Furthermore, it is important to continue to deliver compassionate care as well. I think that the combination of technology and human compassion will benefit the healthcare industry and consumer satisfaction as long as we do not forget that we are all humans are not seen as the machines (the machines that are or will be keeping us alive). I think as nurses and future nurses we should be aware of the technological advancements that are out there and the advancements in health information applications that are on smartphones. We should review the applications on the mobile devices before we recommend or offer the application as another resource of information for our patients to ensure it is understandable and accurate information.

Reference

http://www.scripps.org/news_items/4217-scripps-doctors-study-novel-new-device-to-diagnose-irregular-heart-beat