The issue of ‘American Family Physician’ dated October 15 comprised of a review that had information on techniques for usage of corticosteroid injections for common musculoskeletal conditions. Doctors say that to administer successfully, conducting the correct diagnosis (who to inject), carrying out the right procedure (how to inject), and use of the appropriate pharmaceutical (what to inject) is important. To relieve from pain, reduce inflammation and improve mobility, corticosteroids can be injected into articular, periarticular, or soft tissue structures. For rapid pain relief, anesthetic agents can be added to the injection. Along with that, steroid injections may provide useful diagnostic information.

Dutch firm developing radiation oncology solutions, Nucletron, will now be offering innovative solutions for the treatment of cancer in Asia. The company specializes in brachytherapy (curing cancer from the inside by bringing a radioactive source close to the tumor) The procedure has been found to be effective for certain types of cancer, reducing treatment time from two months to as little as one day. The approach is more accurate, safer and cheaper, offering convenience to patients with localized treatment. As more and more hospitals in Asia spend increasingly on the upgradation of health care facilities, Nucletron plans expansion in Asia especially in terms of projects with clinical teams to enhance standards of patient care.

Baxa Ltd has launched its Baxa ZR pre-filled saline IV syringes in Britain. The new line of sterile syringes is safer than manually filled syringes. Easy to administer, ZR is cheaper, more effective and uses lesser shelf-space than its alternatives. They are available in the units of 10 mL and 5 mL. Clear labeling reduces errors in liquid medication. A pull-off cap on the tip hints towards a broken seal, preventing re-use. The shelf life is two-years and the nursing staff can see the expiry dates clearly.

The Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP) has launched its Pandemic Influenza Planning Toolkit: the ‘flu’ kit to support clinicians and nurses in order to educate staff. The kit is a part of the organization’s plan to deal with a situation like influenza epidemic. Primary care staff is crucial to the assessment of the disease and controlling its spread. The kit comprises of 5 practice posters and a CD with the education modules giving simple measures such as washing hands and mask wearing that can prevent the spread of respiratory infections.

Sonic Innovations, Inc. has introduced sonicBLU, a cordless communication equipment which would connect the users of the company’s Velocity(TM) hearing aids to Bluetooth-enabled cell phones. The device has up to four hours of talk time a stand-by time of up to 70 hours. The lithium-ion battery is rechargeable within one and a half hours. The operating range of the device can go up to 10 meters. It weighs 10 grams, having dimensions of 42 mm x 24 mm x 12 mm.

A study conducted by Salud Family Health Centers recommends the use of a retinopathy camera for screening diabetic retinopathy patients effectively. Earlier identification of diabetes can help to control glucose in a better way, thereby halting the progression of blindness. This can prove to be a valuable tool in primary care setup, where clinicians and nurses can be trained to be able to read images of the retina. If implemented, this can emerge as a cost-effective method to get treatment for vision loss in diabetics without hiring the service of ophthalmologists.