Read about the latest news on ECG / EKG Machines

Medical researchers estimate that up to 35 percent of all Americans suffer at least one episode of Syncope during their lifetime. What is Syncope, you may ask? It is a sudden loss of consciousness, which starts out as light-headedness, weakness and dizziness. While recovery is quick, the signs of onset are unpredictable, which can impair Syncope sufferer’s quality of life.

Since symptoms most often occur when a person’s blood pressure suddenly drops, it is believed that cardiac syncope is the result of a heart abnormality, such as arrhythmia, valve disease, or a blockage.

While Syncope can also be caused by intense anxiety, dehydration, hunger, alcohol and drug use, or other medical conditions, about 20 percent of all cases are heart related. When heart problems are suspected, patients undergo EKG and exercise stress tests and will often wear a 24-hour monitor to record heart rhythms over longer periods of time.

Earlier this year, the FDA approved a tool, known as the Sleuth AT Cardiac Monitoring System, which can help physicians diagnose Syncope. The Sleuth is actually a small EKG recorder, which is smaller than a half-dollar. It is implanted beneath the skin in the upper left chest, and measures the electrical activity of the heart. The recorded information is then stored and retrieved on a Personal Diagnostic Manager, which is a small recorder that can be carried in a handbag or pocket.

Traditional implantable EKG recording devices store information for later retrieval at the doctor’s office, or require manual downloading on a home computer. But the Sleuth makes use of Bluetooth technology to transmit data to a patient’s home base station. From there, the information is transmitted to a monitoring center which is staffed by cardiac technicians, where doctors can access it through a secure web site. Using the Sleuth EKG monitor can assure a patient that their doctor will be alerted immediately of any serious problems.

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No matter where you get your healthcare, the needs are the same, but many community health centers have been underfunded, and were getting by for years with out-of-date EKG machines, X-ray equipment and monitors used for lifesaving procedures.

Thanks to the recent federal stimulus package however, many non-profit community health centers and medical clinics are able to buy new or gently used equipment to replace obsolete EKG and ECG machines, ultrasound equipment and other upgrades, such as digital x-ray machines.

One such medical center, Portsmouth Community Health in Hampton Roads, VA, has nearly 8,000 patients in the Norfolk and Portsmouth area. Medical Director, Dr. Subir Vij, expects the overall quality of medical care for the community will be drastically improved. He expressed excitement about the newly installed electronic doors for disabled patients, new examination tables, and especially the new EKG machines. All of this is possible, said Dr. Vij, because of more than $500,000 in federal stimulus funding.

Aside from new EKG machines and other vital medical equipment, the center will be implementing a new system of electronic health records. Now, when a patient comes to Portsmouth Community Health, and is later transferred to another healthcare facility, they can easily access their most recent medical history and take better care of the patient.

Most states are receiving several million dollars in community health care grants, which is allowing them to hire staff, buy new equipment to care for uninsured patients, and modernize their medical record keeping procedures. According to the Federal Stimulus program records, the state of Virginia will receive a total of $13.5 million in community healthcare funding.

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EKG Machines are a very important piece of technology, and should be found in any good physician’s office or hospital. Also known as the electrocardiogram machine, EKG machines offer a non-invasive way to diagnose a wide array of heart conditions. EKG Machines can even point out a heart attack when it is happening.

However, while a patient is on his or her way to the hospital in an ambulance, an “ambulance monitor” will go a long way towards saving the lives of heart attack victims. Thanks to the ambulance monitor being installed in most EMT units, patients headed to the hospital will get faster treatment for heart attacks until they arrive at the hospital.

According to the Courier-Journal in Louisville, KY, several paramedics from the Clark County and New Albany EMS departments were trained to operate this device, which can send real-time EKG data to the hospital while the patient it still in the ambulance.

The point of these mobile EKG devices is to save the heart muscle. The more time that can be shaved off of the time it takes for the patient to arrive in the catheterization lab, the more the heart muscle can be spared from damage.

The new equipment is the Lifepak 12 defibrillator/monitor, which has 12 leads that send signals about a patient’s heart condition directly from the ambulance to the hospital. While the ambulance is still in transit, information received by the hospital ER staff can allow them to prepare appropriately to care for the patient as soon as they arrive. It also eliminates the need for doctors to perform an EKG test once the patient arrives.

As a result of new ambulance monitors, ER doctors hope to shave the amount of lifesaving time from the typical 90 minute “door to balloon” standard down to 60 minutes. When treatment time is shortened, the expectation for surviving a heart trauma goes up significantly, and damage is markedly decreased.

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The Beckman Coulter Act 10 Hematology Blood Analyzer is a low cost and affordable automated blood analyzer that is ideal for small clinics and medical facilities which do not require high volume analysis requirements. It follows the Act 8 in the Act series of machines coming from the manufacturer. It is an entry level hematology analyzer which offers whole blood and pre dilute capabilities and comes with 10 major parameters for analysis mainly white cell differential and histograms for WBC and RBC, hemoglobin count, HCT count, MCV, MCH, MCHC, platelet count as well as lymphocyte count and percentage.

It allows for one step sample processing using a user friendly touch screen interface that comes with language independent icons and is convenient and easy to operate. The automated probe wipe cleans the probe and makes it safe. The small sample size allows for analysis of blood samples collected from venal and capillary sources. The compact design makes it easily movable and it occupies less space and is ideal for congested environments. The machine is also lightweight and weighs around 14 Kgs. The frequency of processing is relatively high with up to 50 samples being processed per hour with STAT capability. It requires minimal maintenance and is a very reliable and affordable piece of machinery.

The machine is ideal for low volume labs and clinical facilities which perform a maximum of 50 CBC’s each day. Its salient feature is the proprietary Beckman Coulter histogram differential technology that has a proven track record in terms of reliability and efficiency. The results are available in quick time cutting down on waiting time. The low maintenance ensures cost reduction and the machine also comes with data management capabilities for storing patient data and to control sample storage. There is also optional veterinary software which allows hematological analysis capability for cat, dog and horse blood samples in clinical labs.

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The Exercise Stress System with T600 Treadmill from Burdick looks bulky but is portable and is a complete Exercise stress system replete with a treadmill. It can perform resting and stress tests on 12 lead ECG’s. It comes with a sixty day warranty and is competitively priced at 5999 USD.

This machine offers unmatchable quality and precision and incorporates integrated easy to use systems. It comes with a 15 inch color monitor similar to CRT computer monitors which offers as much clarity and resolution as can be expected. The trademark LogiStep operational function highlights the sequential evolution of the entire process and thinks ahead on behalf of the user, making the functioning that less complicated.

The T600 tread mill has a 62 inches by 20 inches walking surface that is wide enough and sports slip free side boards for easy walking or treading. There is also a front rail for gripping onto incase you need extra support. It is streamlined and operates quietly using a brushless DC motor and direct drive technology which delivers optimal performance. It works on power from an AC outlet. The treadmill comes with an emergency stop button and is ideal for exercise stress testing.

The machine has a full alphanumeric keyboard reminiscent of desktop PC keyboards which enables easy data entry and also has additional single touch buttons for calling up various functions of the treadmill like speed increase and decrease as well as the emergency stop button.

The whole system is placed on a portable stand with wheels that has additional racks for storing reports and printed data. It has 11 preprogrammed stress protocols and lets additional programming of up to 30 protocols. The baseline, current median beat and ST measurements are recorded throughout the test process and the trend graphs are displayed on screen or can be printed out using the inbuilt printer on paper. Additionally the machine has an outlet socket which lets you connect it to an external printer.

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The GE Dash 2000 Vital Signs Patient Monitor is a high performance delivering piece of medical machinery that offers a complete mobile monitoring solution and life critical patient data regardless the environment. These machines come jam packed with high end technological solutions and have exceptionally user friendly features that ensure ease of use and simplicity.

The monitors are versatile and deliver reliable patient monitoring services regardless of what kind of medical facility, either large or small. They are ergonomically designed and characterized by their durability and lightweight which also offers portability. The other highlight of these machines is that they are highly affordable and deliver what is traditionally expected of medical equipment that comes from GE stables making it ideal for delivering Gold standard performance in specialized procedure rooms or for bedside and mobile monitoring. The large high resolution display is available both in color and monochrome modes.

The GE Dash 2000 offers a range of parameters for broad spectrum monitoring capabilities such as vital signs with ECG and non invasive blood pressure monitoring. It also provides accurate readings of SPO2 and heart rate. They are able to record the data and also display it on an optional color or monochrome screen. The machine is lightweight and weighs around 12 pounds making it easy to carry around. The display is clear and easy to read.

The machine uses Dinamap technology for blood pressure monitoring and the Marquette based ECG includes EK-Pro functionality that helps detect arrhythmia. The menu options available are user friendly, intuitive and simple enough to be used by even a novice user and hence minimizes training that is required for handling. The machine comes with wireless LAN features that offer seamless connectivity and access to patient charts and bed to bed and central station connectivity. Addition measure of safety is provided during patient transport with the use of responder defibrillator.

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