Around the Web this Week is back again for 2012 and already we’ve been seen some interesting health, tech and medical articles. Here are our favourites…

• Low vitamin D linked to heart disease, death
• Childbirth May Cut Women’s Heart Disease Risk
• Paramedics, man they saved reunite year later
• First Artificial Trachea Implants Breathe Life into Tissue Engineering
• Is long-distance running bad for your heart?
• Wired Feature: Apple’s Secret Plan to Steal Your Doctor’s Heart
• Good luck to Amit Gupta!

For more links and other interesting observations, follow us on Twitter or like our page on Facebook

So the festive celebrations are over and things are starting to get back to normal…or are they?

Like many, your waistband may be a little tighter than usual. Excess weight can mean more than not being able to wear your favorite pants. Heart disease risks include being overweight or making poor lifestyle choices such as being physically inactive or smoking.

Here are some links to some great tools to help you and your heart get on track for 2012.

• Check out the Heart Foundation’s page on modifiable risks.Find what you identify with and how you can make positive changes.
• The Australian Government also has our best interests at heart. The Australian Guide to Healthy Eating will help you tackle your dinner plans head on.
• Learn how to become a ‘swapper’ and share tips and tricks with others in the online swapping community.
• Remind yourself about what you need to do to have a healthy heart.

Hopefully these tools will point you in the direction of a happy and healthy 2012. Good luck!

The Schiller Australia office is back in action and ready to help you meet your New Year resolutions.
From increasing the chance of survival from sudden cardiac arrest with AED Sentinel to efficiently pre screening for sleep apnoea with medilog holter, we can help you get there. Contact us today to find out how!

We’ve been looking back on everything that happened over the year and thought now would be a great time to share some of our more important blog posts from 2011. Our posts from the year covered everything from product launches, to opinion pieces, current affairs and how we supported community. Incase you missed any of our important ones, we’ve created a list below…

• SCHILLER Australia and Staying Alive Paramedical Services give Silvan Football Club a second chance: March saw a Victorian Footy club loose a player, a friend and family member to sudden cardiac arrest. Those at the game were left wondering if things would be different if an AED was on site. Schiller Australia teamed up with Staying Alive to give the club a second chance.
• Study finds that the hearts of our young and fit are at risk: In May we found an article that highlighted the real risks our young athletes face regarding sudden cardiac arrest.
• How the Schiller Australia office is making our whole neighbourhood safer: In June the Schiller Australia office shared a life saving secret with the whole neighborhood.
• It started with a spoon: the humble history of the defibrillator: Also in June we decided to take a close look at the history of the defibrillator. This life saving device has a fascinating history, from spoons to Stalin.
• Taser found responsible for death in US court: During August a US court awarded $10million in compensation after a taser was found to cause death. We investigate how an AED can make tasers a safer option.
• High resolution medilog Holter, a higher standard for patients and reporting: In October we looked at how medilog holter recorders were a superior option to other devices in the market and record at an incredibly clear 15bit resolution, ahead of industry standards of 8 to 10bits.
• Defibrillators in schools have been overlooked for too long: More recently, in November we called for defibrillators to be installed in our schools.
• What the new harmonised national standards will mean for you: With the new workplace safety standards in draft format and ready to be rolled out next year, we looked at what this could mean for your business.

Like many businesses, Schiller Australia will be taking a well earned break for the holidays and closing the office. The Schiller Australia head office in Cardiff will be unattended from Thursday 22nd December and will reopen again in the New Year on Monday 9th January.

But just because we’re not on site doesn’t mean we wont be about to help you. We’ll be available on 02 4954 2442 as always to assist you with any medical product or servicing enquiries you may have.

Schiller Australia would like to take this opportunity to thank you for you ongoing support throughout the year and wish all our readers a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous 2012!

Last one for the year! Check out the interesting health, tech and medical articles that we read this week.

• Tooth cleaning leads to fewer heart problems: study
• Freescale Introduces ‘Home Health Hub’ For Telehealth Applications
• Bionic Contact Lens to Check Your Email
• iPad 2 App from Philips Remotely Measures Vital Signs
• The Naughty List of Holiday Foods

For more links and other interesting observations, follow us on Twitter or like our page on Facebook

The Readers Digest tells us that Christmas and New Year’s Day are the high risk days when it comes to suffering a heart attack. With stress, overindulgence and excess alcohol to blame, we all could do with some tips to survive this festive season, with a focus on being healthy and staying stress free.

Stay sun smart: If you’re planning on celebrating outside, and in Australia, a Christmas BBQ is almost tradition. Be sure to have at least a hat and some refreshing iced water handy.
Avoid getting sunburnt, we all know the drill by now; hats, sunscreen, sunglasses etc and enjoy some time in the shade. Chilling in the shade will also help you avoid any risk of heatstroke. Keep your liquids up, particularly if you are being active and try to avoid too much booze, sun and alcohol just doesn’t mix.

The dreaded hangover: Don’t start too early, just because you’ve got the party frock on doesn’t mean your body is ready.
Watch what you are snacking on and consider your choice of drink, avoid the sugary stuff as the body will prioritise metabolising sugar over alcohol. Having a water between rounds always help minimise the hangover but if this is difficult to keep track of, choose ice based drinks, or spirits with soda water as this will ensure you’re staying hydrated without the effort.

Sitting around: Christmas is synonymous with sitting around and mid afternoon naps. Give your body a chance to refresh itself and burn some calories, opportunities to be active are everywhere. Take a swim in your aunty’s pool, challenge the nieces and nephews to a game of backyard cricket, or ask grandma to take you on a tour of the garden.

Too much family: We all love our family but sometimes it’s no secret that uncle Paul and his political views, or cousin Andy’s job (lack of) job prospects can stir up some heated discussions around the table. If you feel tension rising, create a diversion, engage the kids in a game of backyard cricket, or remove yourself and help out in the kitchen.
Most importantly, don’t decide to drink to deal, start the day fresh and avoid the known conversation traps.

Avoiding the Santa Shape: By now you’ve heard all the tips and tricks to avoiding ending up the size of Santa each Christmas. Try to set goals before you arrive at the table. Watch what you’re snacking on, stick to the more friendly fruits or unsalted nuts.
When eating the big meal of the day choose veggies and fresh salad over meat and take at least a few minutes to decide if you really need those seconds. Ask what is in the foods you’re unsure about and try to limit anything too salty or creamy.

If you tackle these tips and tricks you should find yourself not only surviving the silly season but heading into the new year, refreshed, clear headed and ready to go.

Thanks to the following websites for sharing their festive wisdom.

• Ninemsn Health
• Readers Digest
• abc.net.au
• Better Health
  

SCHILLER Australia announced today that roll out of the smartest defibrillator in their life saving AED Sentinel range, the FRED easy AED Online has begun with Research Junior Football Club in Victoria being the first in Australia to be switched on to the AED Sentinel monitoring system.

Photo: Research Junior Football Club members and SCHILLER AED. From right to left: Matt Cronin, Patrick Cronin, Braden Turner, Joel Clamp and Max Waters.

Early defibrillation has been demonstrated to be the most effective method of saving a person’s life. In areas with public accessible defibrillators, survival from cardiac arrest has risen from below 10% to over 80% ” says Intensive Care Paramedic, Craig Hazelwood, For every minute defibrillation is delayed, survival decreases by 7-10% ”. Hazelwood explains.

New technology has made Automated External Defibrillators (AEDs) simple and user-friendly. Clear audio and visual cues tell users what to do when using an AED and coach people through CPR. A shock is delivered only if the victim needs it.

The smartest defibrillator in the AED Sentinel range is the FRED easy Online AED. Available now for the first time in Australia, the monitored system keeps your team of defibrillators under observation at all times and can be directly managed from a remote central station. A monitored system can be programmed to alert designated response teams for each status change; such as if a technical failure is detected, or if the device is taken from its docking station.

Unlike standard defibrillators, a smart monitored model will not be lost or forgotten over the years. By removing the ‘hands on’ element of onsite maintenance the smart AED Sentinel model cuts day to day operational costs and reduces the chance of the defibrillator being neglected due to human error, changes in staff or forgetfulness. Providing added insurance to the effectiveness of the defibrillator in the time of an emergency.As AEDs become more widely distributed, it is important for business owners to ensure that AEDs are appropriately located, routinely maintained and monitored.

Monitored defibrillators are always up to date. Hassle free system updates are facilitated remotely without anyone on site needing to be involved. This includes the ability to manage software updates and respond to changes in recommendations issued by the Australian Resuscitation Council.

Matt Cronin, President of Research Junior Footy club found the online AED Sentinel system afforded peace of mind to the club and its members “Footy clubs are busy places and it’s often volunteers who are relied on to make sure everything goes smoothly. Having our AED Sentinel online and ready to take care of our players and supporters is a great feeling.”
The strength of AED Sentinel’s FRED easy Online AED lies in its reliability, with constant online connection and limited maintenance requirements it’s a class above other AED’s on the market.

Pricing & Availability
To celebrate the launch of the reliable AED Sentinel monitoring system, SCHILLER Australia is offering all sporting clubs the option to purchase their own FRED easy Online AED for just $3500 including installation and 12 months free monitoring. That’s a saving of $1400 for your club!

To take advantage of the offer simply contact us and quote the code ‘Sentinel Online’. Hurry this offer is only available until 31.12.2011 or while stocks last.

Another week passes and of course, we read some interesting health, tech and medical articles. Here are our favourites…

• Genetically Engineered Spider Silk Protein as Vector for Gene Therapy
• Scarring Is Necessary Part Of Heart Healing
• Cardiac arrest survivor urges nursing students to protect, listen to the body
• Cute Robot Pillow to Prevent Snoring, Maybe Obstructive Sleep Apnea
• Cardio Simulator – A Model of Your Heart

For more links and other interesting observations, follow us on Twitter or like our page on Facebook

Looking back over the course of this year we have shared links to many great health and technology related articles. From articles covering new health focused smart phone apps to tech blog posts looking at how adaptations to iOS devices or the use of social media are benefitting medical professionals. And we think this adds up to a pretty good year for the health and medical industry.

As 2011 draws to a close, it’s not unusual for people to start blogging or sharing their ‘top tens’ and we thought we’d jump on the bandwagon. In this blog post we share what we think are the 11 most awesome smartphone adaptations from 2011.

• 1 – Phone Oximeter: The Phone Oximeter was certainly one of the more entertaining product demonstrations of the year. The quirky musical, put together by researchers at the University of British Columbia‘s Electrical & Computer Engineering in Medicine provides both a clear demonstration of the device and throws in more than a few good chuckles as a cheesy love story unfolds.
  

• 2 – Researchers Transform iPhone into High-quality Medical Imaging Device: Incredibly researchers have been able to add a microscope and simple spectrometer to a standard iPhone, allowing medical professionals diagnose blood diseases. This transformation provides great opportunities for developing nations where hospitals may have limited access to laboratory equipment. The findings can also be transmitted as real time data for analysis or diagnosis.

• 3 – iCard ECG: Imagine if you could turn your iphone or ipad into a powerful Electrocardiograph. By adding a small card to the back of your iOS device you can start the compatible app and see or capture a digital ECG.
  

• 4 – iPrescribe: Let’s face it, reading your Doctor’s handwriting can be a challenging task. The iPrescribe app not only eliminates this risk for pharmacists by ensuring your but increases convenience for everyone involved. In the US the script can be sent directly to the nearest pharmacy, ready for collection.

• 5 – Mersey Burns: An app that improves treatment options for burns victims is an asset for anyone in the field. By calculating the injuries and considering the patient’s age and weight a reliable treatment solution is able to be quickly formulated, giving the patient the best chance of recovery.
  

• 6 – Aspects of Anatomy: This one is for the medical students, or anyone with a keen interest in anatomy. Essentially it’s an anatomy class in your pocket. Providing videos, and progress spot checks to encourage learning.

• 7 – Webicina: Like we said, 2011 has been a great year for health and medical app development, but with so many apps and social media resources available, medical professionals are often overwhelmed by the tools at hand. Which is why we’re pleased to include the Webicina app on our list, acting as a curator, it provides a select range of social media resources for everyone from a medical professional to a patient.

• 8 – iResus: Another app focused on assisting healthcare professionals during an emergency has been endorsed by the UK Resuscitation Council following positive trial results. The free iResus app uses the most up to date information to help Doctors calculate the correct dosages and increase survival rates for out of cardiac arrest.

• 9 – Stroke diagnosis using iPhone app: This journal article reported on a study which found that Doctors can make an accurate stroke diagnosis more quickly using an iPhone app compared to on a traditional computer.

• 10 – iMuscle: Here’s one for all you fitness freaks. This medical app helps you develop a fitness routine by selecting muscle groups for a 3D model and includes animations demonstrating exactly how it should be done.
  

• 11 – findER: Last but not least is an app that helps us find the closest emergency room. Designed for travelers or those with chronic medical conditions, the app does the hard work for you in an emergency and not only finds the nearest hospital but also provides clear directions and further information if required.

So that’s our list of awesome medical and health apps and smartphone developments from 2011. What did you think? Be sure to let us know in the comments if we missed any of your favorites!