Explore more about: Heart Disease

One day, the ultrasound equipment that health care professionals use for essential diagnostic imaging may no longer be confined to the clinic, instead operated by patients in the comfort of their homes. New research marks a major step toward that future.

After years of research, an NIH-funded team has developed a wearable cardiac ultrasound imager that can non-invasively capture real-time images of the human heart. The prototype patch, which is about the size of a postage stamp, can be worn during exercise, providing valuable cardiac information when the heart is under stress.

The NIH announced the winners of the DEBUT Challenge with prizes totaling $130,000

One team helped develop the first photon-counting detector (PCD)-CT system, which is superior to current CT technology. Another team has also been using artificial intelligence to lower the dose of radiation given to a patient when they are undergoing a conventional CT brain scan.

New MRI technology, developed by Siemens in collaboration with researchers at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and College of Engineering, will expand imaging access for patients with implanted medical devices, severe obesity or claustrophobia. The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center is the first in the United States to install this recently FDA-approved full body MRI for patient care. Source: OSU.edu.

Investigators have developed and tested a targeted contrast agent that can detect blood clots in the hearts of patients with atrial fibrillation, or an irregular heartbeat. The strategy could be used to find clots in other parts of the body as well, such as in vessels that, when blocked, can lead to stroke.

NIBIB-funded engineers have developed a flexible epidermal patch that can simultaneously and continuously monitor cardiac output and metabolic levels of glucose, lactate, caffeine, or alcohol. The patch is a major step towards continuous non-invasive health monitoring.

Abnormal heart rhythms—cardiac arrhythmias—are a major worldwide health problem. Now scientists are using ultrasound for more accurate maps of arrhythmic sites in the heart for improved success of ablation procedures.

Every year thousands of Americans, mostly over age 75, require replacement of their aortic valve. Now 3D printed patient-specific models of the aorta can aid presurgical planning and improve outcomes of minimally invasive valve replacement.

Researchers have developed a groundbreaking process for multi-material 3D printing of lifelike models of the heart's aortic valve and the surrounding structures that mimic the exact look and feel of a real patient.