Delivering ultrasonic energy to a target musculoskeletal tissue site includes connecting a delivery device to a vacuum source, a fluid source, and a power signal source. The delivery device has a housing portion maintaining an ultrasound transducer and a tip portion having a sleeve and a cannula. The cannula is coupled to the ultrasound transducer and received in the sleeve to define a covered portion and an exposed portion. Ultrasonic energy is generated by sending a power signal from the power signal source to the ultrasound transducer. The ultrasonic energy is transmitted from the ultrasound transducer to the cannula, such that the exposed portion of the cannula delivers ultrasonic energy at a frequency that is pre-selected to debride musculoskeletal tissue upon percutaneous insertion of the tip portion.

Methods and apparatuses for wireless communication between medical devices are provided. In some embodiments, commodity low power, low bandwidth communication protocols may be utilized to simultaneously convey multiple signals with high fidelity and reliability. For example, cardiac sound data and ECG data may be compressed using a common ADPCM component and inserted into a common BLE packet structure. Command-control data may also be inserted. Where required command-control data reporting frequency is less than the packet frequency, header bits may be utilized to convey multiple types of command-control data in a given packet byte position. Rolling packet sequence values may be inserted into the common packet structure, for use by receiving devices to identify link integrity failures.

An oral appliance is disclosed that provides electrical stimulation to a patient's tongue in a manner that prevents collapse of the tongue and/or soft palate during sleep. More specifically, the appliance may induce a reversible current or currents in a lateral direction across the tongue in a manner that shortens the patient's Palatoglossus muscle and/or Styloglossus muscle SGM, which in turn elevates the base of the tongue toward the roof of the oral cavity, changes the shape of the tongue, pulls the patient's soft palate downward towards a base of the tongue, and/or decreases a volume of the tongue.

A tubing assembly for electronic catheter guidance systems is provided and can include a catheter, an internal acoustic transducer and an external acoustic transducer. The catheter extends in a longitudinal direction and has proximal and distal ends that define a lumen therebetween. Further, the catheter is configured for placement within a patient's digestive or respiratory tract. The internal acoustic transducer can be located within the catheter's lumen, and the external acoustic transducer can be located on or outside the patient's body. The transducers can transmit and/or receive acoustic signals as directed by a processor and communicate with the processor to deliver sound data to a display device. The frequency response and/or attenuation of the signals can indicate placement of the catheter in the digestive tract compared to the respiratory tract. A catheter guidance system and method for accurately placing a catheter in the digestive or respiratory tract are also provided.

In some embodiments, an apparatus for acquiring, processing and transmitting physiological sounds, which may include acoustic sounds from at least one organ in a biological system, may include a sensor for acquiring physiological sounds. Analogue signals representative of the physiological sounds are converted into an electrical output. The electrical output is converted to digital data. A processing unit processes the digital data in a manner selected by a user. A display device displays the digital data and can be customized by a user.

In some embodiments, an apparatus for acquiring, processing and transmitting physiological sounds, which may include acoustic sounds from at least one organ in a biological system, may include a sensor for acquiring physiological sounds. Analogue signals representative of the physiological sounds are converted into an electrical output. The electrical output is converted to digital data. A processing unit processes the digital data in a manner selected by a user. A display device displays the digital data and can be customized by a user.

The invention provides a system for monitoring a fetus in a pregnant woman, and/or the maternal health risk for pregnancies complicated by such as pre-eclampsia and hypertensive disorders. The system comprises a portable or wearable unit that can be worn by the pregnant woman, preferably so as to allow monitoring during daily life, e.g. in the form of an adhesive patch. The portable unit has a sound sensor, e.g. a microphone or accelerometer, to be positioned on the skin of the abdominal area of the pregnant woman so as to detect a vascular sound from umbilical arteries of the fetus or from the uterine arteries of the pregnant woman. The sound sensor is functionally connected to a processing unit which executes a processing algorithm on the captured vascular sound and extracts a signal parameter accordingly, e.g. the Pulsatility Index. The processing unit then communicates the signal parameter, e.g. using an audio signal, a visual display or by means of a wired or a wireless data signal. Some embodiments include one or more additional sensors, such as a sensor for detecting fetal electrocardiographic signals, and/or a sensor for detecting uterus electromyographic activity. Especially, the sound sensor and such additional sensor(s) may be arranged within one adhesive patch or several adhesive patches.

The invention provides a system for monitoring a fetus in a pregnant woman, and/or the maternal health risk for pregnancies complicated by such as pre-eclampsia and hypertensive disorders. The system comprises a portable or wearable unit that can be worn by the pregnant woman, preferably so as to allow monitoring during daily life, e.g. in the form of an adhesive patch. The portable unit has a sound sensor, e.g. a microphone or accelerometer, to be positioned on the skin of the abdominal area of the pregnant woman so as to detect a vascular sound from umbilical arteries of the fetus or from the uterine arteries of the pregnant woman. The sound sensor is functionally connected to a processing unit which executes a processing algorithm on the captured vascular sound and extracts a signal parameter accordingly, e.g. the Pulsatility Index. The processing unit then communicates the signal parameter, e.g. using an audio signal, a visual display or by means of a wired or a wireless data signal. Some embodiments include one or more additional sensors, such as a sensor for detecting fetal electrocardiographic signals, and/or a sensor for detecting uterus electromyographic activity. Especially, the sound sensor and such additional sensor(s) may be arranged within one adhesive patch or several adhesive patches.

A method for monitoring physiological signals of a subject from sounds produced by the subject, including: receiving recorded sounds, including sounds from the subject's chest and being transmitted by the subject's biological tissues to the subject's ears, the recorded sounds being recorded by sound recording element(s) positioned inside earcup(s) of headphones worn by the subject; receiving signals from an accelerometer and a gyroscope being recorded simultaneously with the recorded sounds; detecting heart beats from the cardiac peaks sounds and calculating inter-beat intervals from the heart beats; extracting a first estimation of the breathing signal from the inter-beat intervals presenting respiratory sinus arrhythmia; extracting a second estimation of the breathing signal from residual sounds; extracting a third estimation of the breathing signal and motion artifacts from the signals of the accelerometer and the gyroscope; calculating the breathing signal by combining the first, second and third estimations of the breathing signal.

A system having a scope with a longitudinal length extending between a proximal end and a distal end includes a plurality of markers spaced along the longitudinal length. The system also includes a disassociation and positioning device that is configured to enhance unsedated transnasal endoscopic procedures by at least partially occluding the vision of a patient while enabling body cavity access, and optionally record and sense body functions such as temperature, heart rate and oxygenation of the blood stream. The system further includes a sensor integrated into the distraction device, wherein the sensor is configured to detect the markers on the longitudinal length of the scope.