Diagnostics & Healthcare News

IBM IBM -0.37% today announced that as part of its Impact Grants Program, it will be donating its technology and expertise to help fight Zika virus. Working with Brazil’s Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (Fiocruz), a research institution affiliated with the Brazilian Ministry of Health and a world leader on Zika research, the computer technology will help the…

The federal government released its first overall hospital quality rating on Wednesday, slapping average or below average scores on many of the nation’s best-known hospitals while awarding top scores to dozens of unheralded ones. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services rated 3,617 hospitals on a one- to five-star scale, angering the hospital industry, which…

Take a bow, San Francisco: The Bay Area is home to the highest concentration of marijuana smokers anywhere in the country, according to new data released Tuesday by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Every few years, SAMHSA combines data from the annual National Surveys on Drug Use and Health to derive estimates of…

With Star Trek Beyond opening in theaters, we take a look at how medical devices from the science fiction fantasy series are becoming a reality. Read on to discover 10 medical devices that are sure to inspire some deja vu from diehard Trekkies (or Trekkers, if that’s what you prefer to call yourselves). The Closest…

An FDA advisory panel voted 8-2 that the benefits of using a continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) device as a replacement for fingerstick blood glucose testing for diabetic patients outweigh the risks. They also voted 8-2 that there was a “reasonable assurance” that the expanded indication for the device — a fifth generation CGM from Dexcom…

Dear Julia: Can I trust WebMD? WebMD is the most popular source of health information in the US, and is likely to dominate your Google search results for almost any medical question you have. According to its editorial policy, WebMD promises to empower patients and health professionals with “objective, trustworthy, and accurate health information.” But is…

Recently, a study by Johns Hopkins made headlines by claiming that medical errors are now the third leading cause of death in the US. While that startling statistic was later challenged as being overly broad, it’s clear that over 100,000 people die in the US every year from preventable medical errors.   The US Government…

Children’s Health in Dallas, Texas announced plans to use Proteus Digital Health’s ingestible medication sensors to track medication adherence in kids with liver and kidney transplants. Medication adherence is a challenge for many patients for a variety of reasons — the complexity of medication regimens, costs, memory, and more all play into it. That problem…

A new study suggests that migraines are mostly caused by problems with the blood supply system, and the findings could help inform future research and treatments for the disorder. The research, published by the International Headache Genetics Consortium (IHGC), could help resolve a question doctors have long wrestled with: whether migraines are primarily a vascular…

Dentsply Sirona Inc. said it agreed to buy dental implant systems manufacturer MIS Implants Technologies Ltd. for $375 million. The privately held Israeli-based company sells dental implants under its MIS brand and has annual sales of about $80 million. Dentsply said it sees MIS helping to address the value segment of the implant market. Dentsply…