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New Smart Glasses Allow Nurses To See Veins Through Skin

Posted by samzenpus on from the I'm-looking-through-you dept.

Lucas123 writes "Epson and Evena Medical today unveiled a new smart-glass technology that allows nurses to see 'through' a patient's skin to the vasculature beneath in order to make intravenous placement easier. The Eyes-On Glasses System is based on Epson's Moverio Smart Glasses Technology, an Android-based, see-through wearable display launched earlier this year that allows users to interact with apps and games. The glasses use near-infrared light to highlight deoxygenated hemoglobin in a patient's veins and capture the images with two stereoscopic cameras. The cameras then project the vein images onto the see-through glass screens. The glasses can store the images and video and transfer them wirelessly to a patient's electronic health record, and they also come with dual built-in speakers for video conferencing."

82 of 124 comments (clear)

  1. But can they see why by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    Kids love cinemon toast crunch?

  2. This is amazing by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Can't wait for the nurses "hey, I didn't know you were THAT happy to see me" jokes

    1. Re:This is amazing by bob_super · · Score: 1

      If she's hold a needle with the intent of sticking me, I clearly will not be "happy" to see her.

      Was this technology funded by famous stars who can't find their veins anymore?

    2. Re:This is amazing by Antique+Geekmeister · · Score: 1

      Also anyone who's got low blood pressure problems, or who needs so many IV's for medical reasons that they have veins fail. I've certainly had cancer burdened friends on chemo who've had veins become very difficult to find after they've had so many IV's and so many needle sticks for treatment. And with age, people's veins often become more frail and more likely to be damaged.

    3. Re:This is amazing by Seumas · · Score: 1

      Can't wait for the nurses to still poke 700 holes in my arm trying to get the vein, anyway.

    4. Re:This is amazing by andot · · Score: 1

      I can confirm this. After 10 sessions of chemo my veins are extremely hard to find. It takes 3-4 attempts to hit the vein for nurse usually.

  3. Hey, if this means... by gweilo8888 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ...that they don't have to play "Go Fish" in my arm every time I get an IV in, I'm all for it, unintended consequences be damned.

    Had to go into the hospital for the first time in ages the other day, and it took about five or six sticks -- including the kind where you can see them feeling around for anything once the needle's already in you -- before they hit the vein. And I'm skinny, as well, at least in the places where they stick me. Can't begin to imagine what it's like if your veins are invisible.

    1. Re:Hey, if this means... by Nyder · · Score: 1

      ...that they don't have to play "Go Fish" in my arm every time I get an IV in, I'm all for it, unintended consequences be damned.

      Had to go into the hospital for the first time in ages the other day, and it took about five or six sticks -- including the kind where you can see them feeling around for anything once the needle's already in you -- before they hit the vein. And I'm skinny, as well, at least in the places where they stick me. Can't begin to imagine what it's like if your veins are invisible.

      I have very hard to find veins. 2 hours of poking and prodding is about how long it takes them to decide to take my blood from an artery. I tell them before hand, but they never listen. Of course, it will still probably be 2 or 3 years before hospitals get this sort of tech, let alone little clinics.

       

      --
      Be seeing you...
    2. Re:Hey, if this means... by corran__horn · · Score: 1

      I have heard of widespread deployment of the base technology in IHC hospitals in Salt Lake City already. The glasses part is just a new adaptation.

      --

      If people can connect to one another even the smallest of voices will grow loud.
      --Serial Experiments Lain
    3. Re:Hey, if this means... by Deadstick · · Score: 2

      I don't know what the difference is, but I had an Air Force tech go five tries in each arm and give up, whereupon a doctor smirked at him, picked up the needle and took four tries.

      But at the civilian blood shop I use today, it's first try every time.

    4. Re:Hey, if this means... by L1Trauma · · Score: 1

      Ask them to use an ultrasound. It's fairly easy to find deeper veins with it. My patients who are hard sticks ask for it by name.

    5. Re:Hey, if this means... by TheLink · · Score: 2

      So you think it won't be in vein? ;)

      --
    6. Re:Hey, if this means... by gweilo8888 · · Score: 1

      Yeah, not so much. I'm white, the nurses were both white. Try again, flamebait.

    7. Re:Hey, if this means... by gweilo8888 · · Score: 1

      You wouldn't be so quick to dismiss us as whiners if you went through it yourself. And it's worse for my wife -- I've seen her have to be stuck a dozen or more times before they could hit a vein. In fact, her doctor's office sent her to the hospital to have somebody there do a stick, because several nurses at the doctor's office tried multiple times in multiple places and couldn't get one.

    8. Re:Hey, if this means... by gweilo8888 · · Score: 1

      Thanks for the tip. I'm going to assume this ends up being an extra expense, though, and one that the insurance company then denies as frivolous, meaning we foot the whole bill for the ultrasound ourselves. That being the case, gritting one's teeth and bearing it sounds preferable to an extra few hundred bucks.

    9. Re:Hey, if this means... by Cantankerous+Cur · · Score: 1

      The Red Cross needs these stat. *shudders*

    10. Re:Hey, if this means... by uglyduckling · · Score: 2

      Actually this sort of tech is available now, it uses a compact video projector rather than glasses. It works well, although it does have a tendency to make even tiny veins appear viable for cannulation. http://www.christiedigital.com/en-us/projection-solutions/medical-innovations/pages/default.aspx I can see the potential of using glasses, the good thing about the projection version is that other people can also see what you're doing, which is helpful for a difficult procedure (e.g. PICC lines) where a couple of people might be involved. I could also imagine it reducing litigation potential compared to a single person looking through glasses.

    11. Re:Hey, if this means... by K.+S.+Kyosuke · · Score: 1

      You all must be suffering from severe anemia! I like my nurses in a healthy shade of pink.

      --
      Ezekiel 23:20
    12. Re:Hey, if this means... by uglyduckling · · Score: 1

      Yep, and this will help with those patients in no way at all. In fact, it's likely to make you try for a tiny mobile vein that looks good through the glasses but isn't any good in practice. This would certainly be a helpful tool in the toolkit, but in now way a complete answer.

    13. Re:Hey, if this means... by Mobius+Evalon · · Score: 1

      My mother worked as a nurse for some time, and she has told me on several occasions that if a vein isn't hit the first try that I should tell them to stop, then ask for someone who knows what they're doing.

      I used to donate plasma when I was attending college, and for some time I had no problem; one needle stuck in, draw for 20-ish minutes, done. Then, on the very last time I went there, one of their phlebotomists started fishing (which later left me with a baseball-sized bruise on the inside of my elbow). I told her to quit and get someone who can find a vein, and even though she looked pretty pissed off, the older lady she summoned found a vein on the first try in the other arm and the rest of the visit proceeded without incident.

      What these glasses seem to be addressing is unqualified or under-trained people sticking needles into me. If I see someone approaching me wearing a pair of these things, I'm going to fold my arm back up and ask them to find someone who knows what they're doing.

      --
      Potatoes are friggin' magical. Can you power an alarm clock with a carrot? No, sir!
  4. Comics by Master+Moose · · Score: 4, Funny

    I am sure that I saw an advert for this towards the back pages of my Fantastic Four comics circa 1982

    --
    . . .gone when the morning comes
    1. Re:Comics by mknewman · · Score: 1

      http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.tomheroes.com/images/COMICAD%2520xray%2520glasses.JPG&imgrefurl=http://www.tomheroes.com/Comic%2520Ads/classic%2520ads/x-ray_glasses.htm&h=397&w=522&sz=59&tbnid=xvvHXWcDitHtdM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=118&zoom=1&usg=__YWXIodVw8g5xvEWfRewIUY5wBXk=&docid=GPsGA8hcCWDexM&sa=X&ei=uDOOUpWeG6TA2AXtsoDYBg&ved=0CGgQ9QEwAQ

  5. DIY IR Goggles! by NIK282000 · · Score: 1

    You can make your own passive IR goggles using "congo blue" and "primary red" lighting gels. They work just the same as the ones in TFA but they require about 1kw/m^2 of external incandecent lighting. Not really hospital friendly but they are fantastic for wandering around the neighbourhood in the summer.
     
    Look for Bill Beaty's IR goggles

    --
    Dear aunt, let's set so double the killer delete select all
  6. Imagine the s3x or the pR0n! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Ohh... wait. I can't get that image off my ... yuk

  7. Sounds familiar by TheloniousToady · · Score: 4, Funny

    Haven't we seen stories in this vein before?

    (Or not.)

    1. Re:Sounds familiar by ZXDunny · · Score: 1

      Yes, you have. I'm a nurse in the UK and it's been common knowledge for a few years now that a blank photo negative (ie, no picture, just black) stuck over a mobile phone camera lens coupled with an IR torch allows you to see the veins through the camera viewfinder. It's neat to mess around with a really useful with a difficult cannulation.

      --
      10 PRINT "SCUNTHORPE"(2 TO 5): GO TO 10
    2. Re:Sounds familiar by denzacar · · Score: 1

      This is not a joking matter.
      Tech like this can spare those in need a lot of pain.

      You insensitive prick.

      --
      Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens
    3. Re:Sounds familiar by ColdWetDog · · Score: 2

      And they make several commercial devices that do exactly the same. The one we have projects the image on the skin which would seemingly make it easier to use - less parallax issues. This tech has been around for a while. The glasses are the new kink, not sure if it's of any real use.

      --
      Faster! Faster! Faster would be better!
    4. Re:Sounds familiar by geekoid · · Score: 2

      That's the best jab you got?

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    5. Re:Sounds familiar by ebno-10db · · Score: 1

      it's been common knowledge for a few years now

      So making 10 attempts to get the needle into a vein just satisfies your sadistic tendencies? :)

    6. Re:Sounds familiar by TheloniousToady · · Score: 4, Funny

      "Insensitive prick"? Well, maybe...but that's none of your darn business. It'll happen to you too one day, just wait and see. Meanwhile, let's have a little respect for our elders...

    7. Re:Sounds familiar by denzacar · · Score: 1

      Half the joke is getting the point in on the first try.

      --
      Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens
    8. Re:Sounds familiar by rtb61 · · Score: 1

      The why not automate the whole process. A device that uses ultrasound and infra-red to scan the target region and indicates to the operator when they are over the best location and then automatically quickly inserts the needle to the correct depth at the best target location at exactly the right angle, leaving the nurse to just check on the quality of insertion.

      --
      Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
    9. Re:Sounds familiar by Geste · · Score: 1

      There are similar stories in circulation.

    10. Re:Sounds familiar by uglyduckling · · Score: 1

      You don't know what you're talking about.

    11. Re:Sounds familiar by ZXDunny · · Score: 1

      it's been common knowledge for a few years now

      So making 10 attempts to get the needle into a vein just satisfies your sadistic tendencies? :)

      Well, we have a rule in our trust that ensures we only have three stabs at a patient before we call an anaesthetist to do the job. I can't speak for my colleagues, but I've only ever needed two attempts... But then, some patients I refer straight on to the anesthetics chap without even bothering :)

      This is very handy in emergency situations where it's literally the patient's life on the line if you don't get a needle in.

      --
      10 PRINT "SCUNTHORPE"(2 TO 5): GO TO 10
    12. Re:Sounds familiar by denzacar · · Score: 1

      The comment you were replying to was a joke.

      You insensitive clod.

      --
      Mit der Dummheit kämpfen Götter selbst vergebens
  8. Brought to you by by kramerd · · Score: 1

    the "how the hell did no one think of this before" Department

    1. Re:Brought to you by by quantumghost · · Score: 2

      This is not quite new....I've seen IR based devices over 8 years ago, I first saw this tech in 2005 and it was pretty mature at the time. I can't recall which company it was, but a quick google serarch shows this company has been doing something similar for 4 years. The article is grabbing headlines because they packaged it into a eye-glass format.

    2. Re:Brought to you by by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 1

      The article is grabbing headlines because they packaged it into a eye-glass format.

      O2-amp

      Although perhaps tellingly I can't find any real demo images...

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    3. Re:Brought to you by by uglyduckling · · Score: 1

      They did, just not head-mounted: http://www.christiedigital.com/en-us/projection-solutions/medical-innovations/pages/default.aspx

  9. Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by Taco+Cowboy · · Score: 2

    From TFA:

    The Eyes-On Glasses System is based on Epson's Moverio Smart Glasses Technology, an Android-based, see-through wearable display launched earlier this year that allows users to interact with apps and games.

    That technology from Epson when applied to game, users do not put on those wearable display for hours and hours every single day, they only put them on when they play games.

    On the other hand, nurses working in the hospitals may end up wearing the glasses which projects infrared lights many hours each days.

    My question being --- Would prolonged exposure to infrared light poses any danger on the eyes of the wearer ?

    --
    Muchas Gracias, Señor Edward Snowden !
    1. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by milkmage · · Score: 2

      1) if they only need these things when inserting an IV, they only need to be worn when needed - nurses don't do IVs all day long. a single gaming session is going to last way longer than the 10 seconds it takes to stick a needle in your arm... and it's only for IVs not an injection (which a probably more common)

      2) human eyes cannot see the infrared spectrum.. so what's the risk?

    2. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by quantumghost · · Score: 3, Informative

      From TFA:

      That technology from Epson when applied to game, users do not put on those wearable display for hours and hours every single day, they only put them on when they play games.

      On the other hand, nurses working in the hospitals may end up wearing the glasses which projects infrared lights many hours each days.

      My question being --- Would prolonged exposure to infrared light poses any danger on the eyes of the wearer ?

      Unlikely. IR light has a longer wavelength and thus less energy than normal "visible" light, this is why we can't see in the infrared - the photons are not energetic enough to cause a conformal change in one of the double bonds in rhodopsin. This also partial explains why we can't see in the UV spectrum. The only variable will be the intensity of the light potentially causing thermal damage, but I doubt this would be that powerful enough for that. In addition, starting IVs is not the only thing nurses do....I'd guestimate that it is only about 5% of their daily work load on the general med-surg floors (where most patients have an IV already) and probably no more than 10-15% of the ED RNs.

    3. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by geekoid · · Score: 1

      We can't see it but it still burns our skin.
      I can't see a bullet coming at me, does that mean it won't hurt me?

      --
      The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
    4. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by Obfuscant · · Score: 1

      2) human eyes cannot see the infrared spectrum.. so what's the risk?

      Human eyes can also not see the ultraviolet spectrum. Or the microwave spectrum. As Weird Al says, stick your head in the microwave and get yourself a tan.

    5. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by theshowmecanuck · · Score: 4, Informative

      My impression is that the IR light is directed at the patient. It is probably mostly absorbed and converted to heat when it hits the skin, but the haemoglobin in veins close to the surface absorb differently from the surrounding tissue and makes the veins stand out. Whatever small amount of whatever wavelength it has transformed to after it has hit patients arm or other body part to be stuck, is reflected, recorded by cameras, and is projected on the lenses of the glasses. The way I read it, it is the projected images (like on a monitor or tv) that are viewed, likely as false colour or grey scale; not a full shot of IR pointed back at the wearer. So I would guess the answer is, not likely.

      --
      -- I ignore anonymous replies to my comments and postings.
    6. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by Macgrrl · · Score: 2

      Those sort of injections are usually intramuscular rather than intravenous - phlebotomists however stick needles in veins all day long.

      --
      Sara
      Designer, Gamer, Macgrrl in an XP World
    7. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by demonlapin · · Score: 1

      Those are intramuscular injections, not IV's. You're trying to avoid a vein with those.

    8. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by wonkey_monkey · · Score: 1

      phlebotomists

      Heh. Botom.

      --
      systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
    9. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Those are intramuscular injections, not IV's. You're trying to avoid a vein with those.

      Oh, never mind then, it clearly isn't useful to see the veins when you are trying to avoid them.

    10. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by lxs · · Score: 3, Informative

      So does visible light of similar intensity.
      There is very little difference between near infrared and the visible spectrum. Just because our rods and cones don't react to the different wavelength doesn't make it any more dangerous. The exception to this rule are powerful near IR lasers that appear to the eye as faint red light sources and don't trigger pupil contraction and aversion reflexes.

    11. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by Vitriol+Angst · · Score: 2

      I'd have to say that this system is slightly less dangerous than a warm blanket, but slightly more dangerous than looking a person with the naked eye.

      Near infrared radiation must be stopped!

      --
      >>"ad space available -- low rates!!!"
    12. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by gmclapp · · Score: 1

      The glasses have two cameras that capture near infrared light that is already coming from the patient. The image projected on the glasses for the nurse to actually see is in the normal visible light spectrum.

      Additionally, your eyes are exposed to infrared light constantly. It just happens that your eyes don't "see" it.

      --
      Common Sense (+1)
    13. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by gmclapp · · Score: 1

      Insightful (+10)

      --
      Common Sense (+1)
    14. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by brainnolo · · Score: 1

      You know what emits a lot of infrared light? The sun. Nobody ever complained (if ever, we can "complain" about the emitted UV light).

      Actually try this: take welder googles (not mask), remove the lenses and replace them with stacked sheets of red and blue light filter (Rosco was the brand I used). This will block almost all visible light but let near-infrared come through. Wear these glasses in bright daylight, just never ever stare at the sun, really just don't. However, the result is, that you will see in the near-IR spectrum. Your rods/cones are not very sensible to this frequencies, so it must be a bright sunny day, but it works.

      Just don't look at the sun directly, while your pupils are completely open, you would burn your retina pretty quickly.

    15. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by uglyduckling · · Score: 1

      No, it's not. You inject in a site where you're unlikely to hit a vein, and before pushing the plunger you withdraw a little to ensure there's no flashback (of blood) which would indicate you're in a vein. Not difficult.

    16. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by K.+S.+Kyosuke · · Score: 1

      My question being --- Would prolonged exposure to infrared light poses any danger on the eyes of the wearer ?

      How did you come to the conclusion that the wearer is the one who'd be exposed?

      --
      Ezekiel 23:20
    17. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by kermidge · · Score: 2

      My God, someone here who can read and comprehend. Even the summary stated things well enough. Congratulations. For a while I was wondering if anyone here could follow simple prose.

      So, also, the issue of long-term effects for phlebotomists would not apply either. The matter might be with proper focusing and composition of the image so as to avoid eyestrain. At my local hospital, from what I gathered, they typically might spend a couple of hours in the morning and another in the afternoon collecting blood.

      At any rate, the device would be used in those instances where finding and using a good enough vein is problematic. Depending on the patient, and with enough time in hospital, finding such, whether for a draw or shunt, and being mindful of not damaging a given vein, can be troublesome. This gizmo seems like it might help.

    18. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by demonlapin · · Score: 1

      No, not really. Muscular veins aren't visible in anyone; you test for them by aspirating.

    19. Re:Does the glasses pose any danger to the eyes ? by LurkerXXX · · Score: 1

      "Just because our rods and cones don't react to the different wavelength doesn't make it any more dangerous."

      You forgot the other exception. The other end of our color range. We see down to ~390nm on the blue end of the spectrum. But ultraviolet light at ~240nm will break down our DNA and cause cancer, kill cells, etc.

  10. (Not another) Raspbery Pi comment... by hamster_nz · · Score: 2

    Can't wait to see if this is possible to see this effect with the Raspberry Pi and a Pi NoIR camera, given that you can
    use the material from inside a floppy disk as a visible light filter

  11. Re:Someone had to say it. by zlives · · Score: 1

    same tech

  12. This is hardly new by AuraSeer · · Score: 3, Interesting

    We already have technology that does this. We have hand-held devices that shine near-infrared light through the skin and make the veins show up just fine.

    They have significant problems, which this system shares. Most importantly, they show *all* veins, including all the ones which can't be cannulated because they are too small, too fragile, or too badly scarred. You have to palpate (feel) the vein to assess whether it's suitable, and if you can palpate it, you don't need to see it at all.

    Also, they really only work at all on caucasian skin.

    Further, this system is kind of ridiculously expensive. Even though the prices have dropped on commodity displays, microprocessors, 3G and wifi, and all those bells and whistles, it's still a complex piece of gear. We may as well pay for a bedside ultrasound which costs no more, is more precise, and is useful for a lot more than just IV starts.

    1. Re:This is hardly new by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

      > Further, this system is kind of ridiculously expensive.

      Part of that is because the FDA forces such extreme controls over who can buy them and own them. It cost us more than $10k of background checks, both for the hospital and several individuals that would have access to it, before we were allowed to purchase it. I don't know how much more the storage cabinet that weighs just over 500 pounds cost. Even after that, we can almost never use it because the FDA requires it be kept in that locked cabinet with very strict access controls and logging. Also, the local police objected to it vigorously. The device can make it easier for heroin users to find veins so in the view of the FDA and law enforcement, the device is drug paraphernalia and should be illegal. It's the same reason we were forced to put blue tinted lights in the bathrooms of the hospital. By not doing so they claimed we were encouraging illegal drug use. Somehow the cops think we're criminals and deserve to be put in jail if we use normal fluorescent lights. Cop logic makes no sense.

    2. Re:This is hardly new by uglyduckling · · Score: 2

      I disagree. Certainly in paediatrics transilluminators work on all skin colours. To my knowledge, they don't use 'near-infrared' but use visible light, usually from red LEDs. This technology does use infra-red, and again skin pigmentation shouldn't matter. The projection-based devices I've used (e.g. Vein Viewer) worked fine on black african and asian skin pigments.

    3. Re:This is hardly new by strikethree · · Score: 1

      Also, the local police objected to it vigorously. The device can make it easier for heroin users to find veins so in the view of the FDA and law enforcement, the device is drug paraphernalia and should be illegal. It's the same reason we were forced to put blue tinted lights in the bathrooms of the hospital. By not doing so they claimed we were encouraging illegal drug use.

      Holy shit! Really? Just wow. Is stopping people from doing drugs THIS fucking important? Really? Fuck it, why don't we just buy needles for everyone and let them go at it. This is way too high of a price to pay.

      What do we get out of it? More productive members of society? It would appear that society is productive enough considering the number of unemployed and underemployed people that we have. What do we get out of stopping people from abusing drugs when they were already liable to be abusing them anyways?

      --
      "Someone needs to talk to the tree of liberty about its ghoulish drinking problem." by ohnocitizen
  13. Killer robots by PPH · · Score: 2

    With enhanced vision to pick out a suitably lethal spot. I'm certain I've seen this hinted at in numerous movies.

    --
    Have gnu, will travel.
  14. More IR filters by Okian+Warrior · · Score: 1

    you can use the material from inside a floppy disk as a visible light filter

    If you have a developed roll of film, the black frame at the ends of the roll is opaque to visible light but transparent to IR.

    If you have an old blacklight bulb, the glass is Wood's Glass, which blocks visible light but is transparent to IR and UV.

    Transmission characteristics of Wood's glass

  15. Infrared Sees through Clothes now With WIFI by VortexCortex · · Score: 1

    "The glasses can store the images and video and transfer them wirelessly to a patient's electronic health record..."

    Today, your health record; Tomorrow, The World! Muaha Ha!

  16. Re:Someone had to say it. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Tequila.

  17. Re: Karl Pilkington truly is a visionary. by socz · · Score: 1

    An Idiot Abroad is one of my all time favorite shows. Amazing what he went through.

    --
    My abilities are only limited by my imagination
  18. Sooner the better by Jagungal · · Score: 1

    Man .. I could have done with the last week, they were trying to get a catheter in and had six goes at finding a suitable vein.

    Ended up being done by the main anesthetist who did a local and went in deep.

    Many times when giving blood they have to have a couple of goes, it can be a pain.

  19. Finding veins easily? by clickety6 · · Score: 1

    Why not just call it Junkie-Vision?

    --
    ----------------------------------- My Other Sig Is Hilarious -----------------------------------
  20. technology shouldn't replace expertise by cosmin_c · · Score: 1

    As a doctor I can say this is rubbish. IV access and venepuncture isn't done by visualizing the vein, it's done by using anatomy knowledge to palpate and find a vein that's robust enough to take the needle/cannula. If it's done by sight alone, then it's wrong, there are plenty of visible veins that collapse as soon as a needle is inserted. This reminds me of the attempt to give patients local anaesthesia before having a cannula inserted, which was proved to be a rubbish solution. If you're a patient, I can feel your pain, but do understand we're there to make you better and we loathe the idea of causing you pain via needles. It's just something that has to happen until we find a way of giving medication wirelessly.

    1. Re:technology shouldn't replace expertise by Mike+Frett · · Score: 1

      Exactly! Unless the Glasses can feel, they are useless.

    2. Re:technology shouldn't replace expertise by green1 · · Score: 2

      And as an EMT, (a profession that generally starts a lot more IVs) I would love to have this tech available. It's not an either or situation. seeing the veins is a great first step to evaluating which one to use. You don't cannulate the first vein you see, you still have to evaluate the suitability of each one, but being able to see them would be a great start. Limiting yourself to palpation based on anatomy can often miss good veins that are a little too deep or not quite where you expect them (not every person has identical vein locations) this wouldn't be needed for all IV starts. But on some of the more difficult ones this could really help a lot.

    3. Re:technology shouldn't replace expertise by green1 · · Score: 1

      They don't surgically remove your fingers when they issue you the glasses. You're allowed to do both...

    4. Re:technology shouldn't replace expertise by uglyduckling · · Score: 2

      Sound like you've never worked in paediatrics. Palpation is almost useless for children under 8, just go for what you can see, transilluminate or in this case pick up with infra-red.

  21. Oh by nightsky30 · · Score: 1

    Heeeeeelllllloooooo Nurse!!!

  22. I remember these by BoFo · · Score: 1

    How common were the adverts for Xray Specs in the back of the DC comics I read as a child. Give me my Xray Specs and a Mr. Microphone and I could be the life of the party. Hey good lookin'! I'll be back to pick you up later.

  23. Poked too much by oldCoder · · Score: 1

    I recently spent far too much time in a hospital and they poked me a lot. A whole lot. Each time they needed to find a vein. I've been asking for technology like this for a long time.

    Finding a vein is now a very personalized skill. One doctor who was a real genius at this, has poor sight and hearing, and told me he does it by feel. Others use very bright lights. One nurse, who was the backup when everybody else couldn't find a vein, said she doesn't know how she does it.

    For people who need intravenous meds all the time, there are permanent installations they attach to the patients arm or neck. They go into the big vein leading into the top of the heart, the superior vena cava.

    This could be a great boon to patients.

    --

    I18N == Intergalacticization