Various systems and methods are provided for reducing pressure at an outflow of a duct, such as the thoracic duct or the lymphatic duct, for example, the right lymphatic duct. A catheter system can be configured to be at least partially implanted within a vein of a patient in the vicinity of an outflow port of a duct of the lymphatic system. The catheter system includes first and second selectively deployable restriction members each configured to be activated to at least partially occlude the vein within which the catheter is implanted and to thus restrict fluid within a portion of the vein. The catheter system includes an impeller configured to be driven by a motor to induce a low pressure zone between the restriction members by causing blood to be pumped through the catheter when the restriction members occlude the vein.

Procedures to achieve full subtotal, subcutaneous and suprafascial exeresis of fatty tissue between the skin and the musculature in lipedema and secondary lymphedema patients are provided. The procedures improve the patient's lymphological situation, such that no further manual lymphatic drainage or compression garments are required.

Provided herein is a method for determining cancer treatment using an immune modulating therapy in a subject in need thereof. The method comprises assessing whether a lymphatic system in a subject is dysregulated. When the lymphatic system is dysregulated, a treatment for the lymphatic system is determined before a therapeutic amount of an immune modulating therapy is administered to treat cancer in the subject. Alternatively, when the lymphatic system is dysregulated, an immune modulating therapy is selected to treat cancer in the subject, which immune modulating therapy is independent of immune-cell priming, antigen trafficking, antigen presentation, and any combination thereof. The subject may also be treated for cancer accordingly.

The present invention provides a method for stabilizing the gain of an avalanche photodiode in a medical laser diode receiver. This method is characterized by comprising: (a) a step in which a high-voltage generation unit generates a high-voltage bias and applies same to an avalanche photodiode; (b) a step in which a temperature sensor senses the temperature of the avalanche photodiode; (c) a step in which a control unit controls a variable resistance value, which varies the voltage of the high-voltage bias, according to the value of the sensed temperature; (d) a step in which to detect if an output voltage signal is equivalent to the intensity of light received by the avalanche photodiode; and (e) a step in which a storage unit matches the sensed temperature value with the controlled variable resistance value and stores same. The present invention allows a reduction in production costs and also a significant reduction in the size of a measuring device itself. In addition, the present invention can prevent measurement errors by stabilizing the voltage gain of the avalanche photodiode and can promote precise diagnosis by accurately measuring scattered light even in a highly curved part of a human body to be measured by passing the light of a laser diode therethrough.

Embodiments of the present invention provide methods of detecting disease, methods of treating disease using targeted hyperthermia, methods of treating disease using targeted chemical agents, methods of treating disease comprising accurate measurements of the efficacy of treatments. The effect of nanoparticles on magnetic fields can be used to determine the location of a disease, and a measure of the number of cells characteristic of the disease. This location and measure can be used to guide therapy, and provide information regarding the most effective therapy to be applied. The same nanoparticles can be used to facilitate hyperthermia treatments, and to allow targeted application of chemical therapeutic agents.

In certain aspects, the invention relates to processes for using renally excretable optical agents to detect one or more tissues of the renal system of a surgical patient. In certain aspects, the invention relates to a kit including a biocompatible composition containing one or more optical agents and instructions for using the optical agent(s) in a process of the present invention.

A monitoring apparatus includes a housing that is configured to be attached to a body of a subject. The housing includes a sensor region that is configured to contact a selected area of the body of the subject when the housing is attached to the body of the subject. The sensor region is contoured to matingly engage the selected body area. The apparatus includes at least one physiological sensor that is associated with the sensor region and that detects and/or measures physiological information from the subject and/or at least one environmental sensor associated with the sensor region that is configured to detect and/or measure environmental information. The sensor region contour stabilizes the physiological and/or environmental sensor(s) relative to the selected body area such that subject motion does not impact detection and/or measurement efforts of the sensor(s).

A wearable device includes a housing with a window and an electronic module supported by the housing. The electronic module includes a photoplethysmography sensor, a motion sensor, and a signal processor that processes signals from the motion sensor and signals from the photoplethysmography sensor. The signal processor is configured to remove frequency bands from the photoplethysmography sensor signals that are outside of a range of interest using a band-pass filter to produce pre-conditioned signals, and to further process the pre-conditioned signals using the motion sensor signals to reduce motion artifacts from footsteps during subject running. The device includes non-air light transmissive material in optical communication with the photoplethysmography sensor and the window that serves as a light guide for the photoplethysmography sensor. The window optically exposes the photoplethysmography sensor to a body of a subject wearing the device via the non-air light transmissive material.

Systems, devices and methods for providing active and/or passive compression therapy to a body part can include a compression device worn over a compression stocking. The compression device can have a pulley based drive train that is driven by a motor to tighten and loosen compression elements, such as compression straps, in a precise, rapid, and balanced manner. Sensors can be used in the compression device and/or compression stockings to provide feedback to modulate the compression treatment parameters.

A device for observing a sentinel lymph node (SLN) in a human body. More particularly, the present invention relates to a device for observing an SLN by detecting near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence caused by a fluorescent material such as indocyanine green (ICG) at the SLN and a method for detecting NIR fluorescence at an SLN. Particularly, in the implementation of a composite image obtained by reproducing a fluorescent material such as ICG and NIR fluorescence emitted by excitation light together with a visible light image, it is possible to detect an SLN with high accuracy through a color contrast method and/or a temporal modulation method using an NIR fluorescence image signal and a visible reflection light image signal.