asthma

'Barcoding' viruses could help detect mutated strains

The influenza A virus ranks among our planet's least-controlled pathogens, resulting in seasonal epidemics and even global pandemics. The H1N1 virus of 2009 -- a new type of influenza A virus -- caused the first influenza pandemic in more than 40 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

But despite the fast and furious spread of H1N1 that year, it turned out to affect the lungs much in the way the seasonal flu does. Using a new type of test developed at the University of Leeds "might have been a way to identify how lethal … Read more

Wireless asthma inhaler teaches proper use

Many of us have never been properly trained on how to do or use certain things we really should be good at. Putting on condoms and installing infant car seats are just two skills that come to mind; when we get them wrong, the health consequences can be grave.

The same can be said for improper asthma inhaler use--a serious and expensive problem considering some 5,000 people visit the emergency room due to and 11 people die from asthma every day, according to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America. Let's face it: some devices could use training wheels.

Enter the T-Haler, a digital asthma inhaler training device developed by researchers at Cambridge Consultants. Patients can use the inhaler and, via interactive software linked to the wireless device, get real-time visual feedback on the areas that need improving.… Read more

Got diabetes? No more pricks, just breathe on this

Our breath can say a lot about us--and not just what we had for lunch.

Engineers at the University of Florida are reporting that they have designed a tiny and affordable sensor that can do what has up until now been considered impossible: detect glucose (as well as pH and alkalinity) levels in breath condensate.

Fan Ren, professor of chemical engineering and a researcher for this project, says that the team's most recent research, published in the January issue of IEEE Sensors Journal, upsets long-held assumptions that glucose levels in breath are too small for accurate readings; the sensor, … Read more

First GPS-enabled asthma inhaler prototype

The concept of a GPS-enabled asthma inhaler emerged less than a month ago, and already it is very nearly a reality.

SiliconSky GPS announced Tuesday that is has successfully developed a prototype of the first-of-its-kind asthma inhaler with built-in GPS tracking.

This is the result of a collaboration between SiliconSky GPS and David Van Sickle, the University of Wisconsin researcher who first unveiled the concept. It took them six months to come up with the design.

Design was a huge challenge, as the the inhaler had to remain small enough to carry on the go and wouldn't sacrifice the … Read more

Disease detective plans GPS-enabled asthma inhaler

Thanks to David Van Sickle, we'll soon be able to track (and hopefully eliminate) recurring asthma attack outbreaks. Van Sickle, a scholar in the Department of Population Health Sciences at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is working with students in the biomedical engineering program to create an asthma inhaler with a built-in GPS receiver.

The project is still in its early stages, but David's goal is to eventually map out danger zones that could be life-threatening to those stricken with the lung disease. He already has it all mapped out: "rescue inhalers" will pinpoint the location of … Read more

The 404 135: Where that "Umbrella" song sucks

We're back from vacation and better than ever! Now you can check out a YouTube videostream of our daily show as well as download the podcast. Oh, yeah...big things happening at The 404. On today's show, we bring you the heat from the Interwaves: weekend movie roundups (Surprise! Hancock still sucks), a heartwarming story about a decapitated Chihuahua, advancements in genetically modified human beings, smog safety concerns at the Olympics in Beijing, and one mysterious alien aircraft in yonder atmosphere. Episode 135 Download today's podcast

Fashion wars in asthma inhalers?

Perhaps it's an omen for our environmental future, but there's been a rising number of products aimed at asthma sufferers on the market lately. Still, who would have thought that inhalers would become fashion items?

The "Apod" started the trend with its neon-colored cases, and now the "Puffapouch" has upped the ante with its own versions, which seem a bit more urban in such styles as denim and camouflage. And Respire's magnetic inhaler case provides a fashionable way to carry the devices while keeping them free of "dust and fluff." All … Read more

Apod hopes to be breath of fresh air

It's depressing, but the steady growth of asthma sufferers worldwide has given rise to more everyday products to deal with the disease. A few months ago, for example, we even saw a snorkel made for those with the affliction. Now, taking some design (and marketing) cues from the gadget world, a U.K. creative team has come up with the "Apod," a line of cases for the pocket inhalers used by those with the chronic respiratory ailment. The brightly colored Apods could prove especially important in de-stigmatizing the inhalers because so many asthma sufferers are children.

The first snorkel for asthma sufferers

Anyone who's suffered from asthma (like us) knows that water sports can be some of the most frightening activities--and any that require prolonged periods beneath the surface are the absolute worst of all.

That's why the Asthma Freedom Snorkel might sound like fodder for an SNL skit but is actually an important product. The snorkel--which manufacturer MediDive calls the first of its kind--gives immediate access to inhaler medication, helping to lessen the panic attacks that are so familiar (and potentially dangerous) to asthmatics.

So far, it has gotten positive reviews in Australia by tour operators on the Great Barrier Reef. … Read more