Crave

No registration, no strings attached, just an easy way to potentially save money on prescriptions.

Before you make another run for the Canadian border in search of cheap meds, try flashing the NeedyMeds iPhone app at your local pharmacist.

This drug-discount card promises to save you up to 75 percent on your prescriptions. It's not insurance, but rather a free program that's available to anyone.

No, really. There's no charge for the NeedyMeds app, no charge to use it, and no registration required.

Just install it on your iPhone or iPod Touch, head to the drugstore (NeedyMeds is accepted at over 50,000 pharmacies, including all major drugstore chains, according to the organization), and see if it saves you some med money.

What happens if you already have insurance? Try NeedyMeds anyway. Depending on your deductible, it might actually cost you less. You can also use it for over-the-counter medications (if you have a doctor's prescription) and even for prescriptions for your pet.

It's worth pointing out that the app is really just a digital version of the NeedyMeds card you can print at home and stick in your wallet.

I should also mention that I have no idea if NeedyMeds works. I'm not taking anything stronger than green tea at the moment, so I haven't been able to put the program to the test.

If you have, or you have experience with other drug-discount cards, share your thoughts in the comments. Personally, I think you have nothing to lose by giving NeedyMeds a try. Tell me if I'm wrong.

(Credit: Japan Trend Shop)

For a mere $39, the Body Check Ball sounds like a dodgy proposition in terms of claiming to calculate your body fat. More so when it states that it can measure your bone density and muscle ratio, all by holding this in your palms. No "Om" chant necessary.

Instead, true to its Japanese origins, the Body Check Ball employs good old technology. A pair of electrodes pass currents from your hand to the ball, which then churns out your health stats onto the LCD panel. Amazingly, this stores up to 10 user profiles and even sports a clock and alarm. Get out of here.

The only hiccup is the four AAA-size batteries, which will cost you more than AA batts and hold less of a charge.

(Source: Crave Asia via OhGizmo)

(Credit: Screenshot by Dong Ngo/CNET)

The most I've paid for an iPhone app is $5.99. This is why I was so excited to get a a promotional code for the $19.99 Human Atlas and install the software on my iPhone 3G right away. The app also works on the iPod Touch.

Human Atlas offers 3D images and videos of 150 common medical treatments and conditions. After a few days of use, I think this is a great application for those who want to learn about their body and conditions ranging from allergies, muscle pain, high blood pressure, stroke, and tendon injuries to diabetes, cancer, HIV/AIDS, and more.

Basically, you will appreciate anything you can learn from this app.

What you won't appreciate, however, is its lacks of features. The Human Atlas app has two parts: 3D image and video. The images don't allow for rotating the body, you're stuck with the front of the object. This makes the images seems less "3D" than they could be. Also, you can't display the images vertically. While it's OK to watch the video with the phone put in the horizontal position, the images could benefit a lot more from the vertical display as you won't have to scroll as much.

Intel has begun pilot programs to test a home health laptop, application, and database system that puts patients remotely in sync with their health care providers.

The Intel Health Guide, which includes a laptop for patients and an online interface for health care administrators, received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in July. Now Aetna, Scan Health Plan, Erickson Retirement Communities, and the Providence Medical Group in Oregon have each begun pilot programs to test how well the system works, or doesn't work, with their patients.

Intel's Health Guide PHS6000 has built-in tools like blood pressure cuffs for reading vitals.

(Credit: Intel)

"Health care is an area where getting and gathering the right information, and getting decisions made in a timely matter can make an enormous difference in patient care. We hope this technology helps with that," Mariah Scott, head of sales and marketing for Intel's Digital Health Group, said in an interview.

While many see health care moving into the home through technology, it seems like Intel knows government approval alone will not convince people to trust a tech company to dispense medical advice.

The company also announced that it has partnered with two major names in medicine, the Mayo Clinic and the American Heart Association, to provide the application's medical assessments, evidence-based treatment guidelines, and educational multimedia content.

That's probably a good idea because Intel plans to sell its Intel Health Care Management Suite as a comprehensive online data-collection system for health care organizations; the Intel Health Guide PHS6000 device is intended for patients themselves to operate, not experienced clinicians visiting the homebound as previously speculated.

A new portable device lets doctors conduct a quick, non-invasive pediatric eye exam--and hopefully detect vision problems early.

The PediaVision Assessment Solution (PAS), scheduled to be demonstrated at the American Academy of Pediatrics meeting in Boston this week, uses an infrared camera to take digital images of the eye in children as young as six months. The screener consists of a small, handheld unit; a printer; and a laptop with preinstalled software.

Basically, the PAS projects an infrared light through the pupil onto the retina from a distance of 3 feet (good for shy kids who don't like people up in their faces). Depending on the refractive problem, the reflected light forms a specific brightness pattern within the pupil. The administering doctor then gets a digital printout of the results in about five seconds.

(Credit: PediaVision)

Florida-based PediaVision--which was founded by a team of optometrists and ophthalmologists--says the device can be used by non-vision specialists to detect conditions including near-sightedness, far-sightedness, blurred vision, and irregularly shaped corneas or lenses.

The company's CEO, David Melnik, says the PAS aims to provide the pediatricians and family practitioners who are the gatekeepers of children's health with a simple and accurate way to catch vision problems early, when they are most curable.

"Parents look to their pediatrician for early health assessments and trust their physician to thoroughly evaluate and identify any problems from birth," said Melnik, adding that pediatricians now have an easy-to-use tool for early vision assessment.

The idea here is that young children with vision problems often don't know they see the world differently than others. That, along with the fact that vision problems generally don't cause physical pain, means that many kids' vision issues often go undetected.

We'll be curious to see what docs have to say about the device once they give it a try.

An Atom-based tablet from Panasonic.

(Credit: CNET)

This product is so new, it doesn't even have a name. Yet.

During the announcement of the new ToughBook notebooks, Panasonic also took the opportunity to show off one of its upcoming Intel Atom-based tablets. This white unit is meant for use in the medical field. Aside from a touch-screen display, it has features like RFID and a fingerprint sensor built in. You probably won't see this ToughBook in stores anywhere but don't be surprised if you see a nurse keying in your particulars and medical history on something like this in the future.

The company will officially announce this product later in November.

(Via Crave Asia)

This molecular-beam epitaxy system is used to make small laser materials for use in compact and low-cost breath meters for early cancer detection.

(Credit: University of Oklahoma)

University of Oklahoma researchers are working on a high-tech breath test that could one day help detect cancer.

The team is using mid-infrared laser technology to measure suspected cancer biomarkers in the breath, such as ethane, formaldehyde, and acetaldehyde, and to establish the relationship between those gas molecules and the disease. Ultimately, they hope their work will lead to easy-to-use detection devices that don't emit radiation.

But it may take a while before doctors have such devices in hand. Patrick McCann, an OU professor of electrical and computer engineering who's leading the team, predicts that it will take 5 to 10 years for the gadgets to find their way into clinics.

Arnaud Sow, an OU graduate student from France, processes a sample for laser fabrication.

(Credit: University of Oklahoma)

Nonetheless, he sees them as a potentially profound advancement. "A device that measures cancer-specific gases in exhaled breath would change medical research as we know it," he said.

McCann expects to rely on nanotechnology to improve laser performance and shrink laser systems, which would allow battery-powered operation of a low-cost handheld device. The sensor, he says, would be particularly useful for cancers that are difficult to detect, such as lung cancer.

The researchers' work stems from studies showing that dogs can detect cancer by sniffing the exhaled breath of cancer patients. A March 2006 issue of the journal Integrative Cancer Therapies reported that by smelling breath samples, dogs identified breast and lung cancer patients with accuracies of 88 and 97 percent, respectively.

But even though data shows that dogs can detect cancer by smell, medical researchers still have to figure out exactly what the gases are that they're sniffing. And that's keeping McCann's group busy.

The team has been active in related research since 1991. One outcome of their work includes the spin-out of EkipsTechnologies, a start-up based in Norman, Okla., that's applying mid-infrared laser technology to develop breath analysis instruments to diagnose and monitor diseases such as asthma.

Other links between cancer and scent have emerged recently, as well. Scientists from Philadelphia's Monell Center reported at the American Chemical Society's annual conference last week that a common form of skin cancer could be diagnosed by its distinctive smell.

(Credit: Aespironics)

Inhalers may not just be for asthma sufferers anymore. If an Israeli start-up called Aespironics has its way, small, cheap inhalers could soon deliver all sorts of other medications, as well.

Aespironics has developed a novel disposable dry-powder inhaler that it says has the attributes of the highest-performing inhalers but only costs a fraction of the price. The patient's breath activates a tiny turbine inside the device that scrapes or brushes micronized particles into the airflow, quickly and evenly delivering the dose to the lungs without leaving particles sticking to the inside of the mouth.

Because the turbine is activated via breathing, expensive electrical additions found in other inhalers of the same class are unnecessary.

Testing on the credit card-size device is due to begin by the end of the year, with the product possibly hitting the market within three years, the company says. Applications could include migraine treatment and situations that call for emergency medicine.

Aespironics was founded more than a year ago with a $600,000 investment from Israeli venture capital firm Maayan Ventures, and matching funds from the Israeli Ministry of Science. The company plans to begin its next round of financing in a month.

(Via Israel21C)

With Medtronic's "M-Powered Concept Car," drivers can get blood glucose readings through the dashboard.

(Credit: Courtesy of Medtronic)

If someone with diabetes is driving down the road and starts to feel a hypoglycemic attack coming on, that person may realize what's happening and stop to get a bite to eat. Or not, which could lead to trouble. That latter scenario inspired Medtronic's "M-Powered Concept Car" and its onboard glucose-monitoring system.

With data transmitted via Bluetooth, the wireless setup lets people wearing a continuous glucose-monitoring system (CGMS) get readings of their blood sugar levels through audio and visual cues from the car's dashboard. Medtronic, a medical-device manufacturing company, premiered the car at the 68th Annual Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association, which is wrapping up Tuesday in San Francisco.

Steven Cragle, Medtronic's senior director of communications, said people with diabetes risk losing consciousness due to a sudden drop in blood sugar levels. Diabetics with active lifestyles could possibly experience this while driving.

"Losing consciousness while driving is obviously not a good thing and statistics can back up that this is a safety risk for people with diabetes," he said. "We wanted to make driving safe and possible."

The system looks a lot like a GPS unit. With it onboard, drivers are informed when they have a drop in blood sugar levels, and are urged to pull over or given directions to the nearest restaurant or rest stop. The company said a future system would allow the car to dial up medical assistance once the driver has abnormal levels of blood glucose or fails to respond to prompts.

For now Medtronic has no estimate of when, or if, the car will enter the market.

The "M-Powered Concept Car" is the most recent addition to what appears to be a growing field of products that help patients monitor their medical conditions.

Germany's Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft research institute, for example, recently conceived of a digital assistant that measures a wearer's respiratory signals and transmits the information to a cell phone or a PDA. If the value fails to reach a predefined level, the system sets off an alarm.

And the Tyndall National Institute in Ireland has come up with a radiation detector that fits inside an implantable medical device to measure how well radiation therapy is working for cancer patients.

Medtronic shows off its concept car at the American Diabetes Association's meeting in San Francisco.

(Credit: Courtesy of Medtronic)