The Journal of mHealth Vol 2 Issue 1 (February 2015) | Page 21

Industry News
Junior surgeons often find that when
watching an operation for the first time,
although it is easy to appreciate technical
skill it is very difficult to truly appreciate
the decision making occurring during the
procedure. This is a huge missed opportunity in terms of training experience.
Recent research has shown that breaking down an operation into a series of
individual steps and decision points can
greatly enhance operative understanding
and retention of knowledge.
Touch Surgery identifies the key steps
and decisions within an operation using
the CTA method and presents the information within an interactive visual for-

mat that allows someone to perform
each step of the operation.
The process of interacting with learning
material is well known to greatly improve
knowledge retention rates compared
with traditional methods such as lectures,
reading or watching video. In this way
the platform provides a very effective
and efficient way of training surgeons
even before they step into the operating
room. Additionally, by distributing their
app for free, Touch Surgery is changing
surgery by allowing for the dissemination of CTA-based surgical education
across the world. n

World-First Insulin Pump for FourYear-Old Australian Boy
A four-year-old Perth boy has become the first patient in
the world to be fitted with a new pancreas-like pump which
researchers say will improve the lives of diabetics of all ages.
Xavier Hames suffers from type 1 diabetes and is at constant
risk of hypoglycaemia - when low glucose levels can result in
seizures, coma or death. But a pump that can predict when
blood sugar levels are becoming dangerously low and halt the
release of insulin has changed that.
Xavier received the device from Princess Margaret Hospital for
Children, where he has been receiving treatment for his diabetes
since he was 22 months old.
Although the pump is similar to others already on the market, it
is set apart by the inclusion of the predictive sensor. The device
features a sensor that reads blood sugar levels and communicates to the pump, which is connected to the body underneath
the skin to administer the insulin. Unlike traditional pumps, this
new technology does not deliver a constant stream of insulin to
the body. Instead, the device uses an algorithm to track blood
sugar levels over time, predicting when insulin is no longer
required. This reduces the risk of dangerously low blood sugar
levels, known as hypoglycemia.
Symptoms of a hypoglycemic attack can be mild and include
sweating or fatigue, but in more serious cases, weakness, temporary
unconsciousness, organ damage, coma, or death can occur. These
typically happen while the person is sleeping (and therefore not eating) because the insulin is still working in their body, bringing their
blood sugar to dangerously low levels. Diabetics often have to wake
up several times each night in order to monitor their blood sugar.
"The majority of hypoglycemic attacks occur at night when a
person is asleep and they might not be able to react or recognise the attack," Professor Tim Jones from Princess Margaret

Hospital told The West Australian. "This device can predict
hypoglycemia before it happens and stop insulin delivery before
a predicted event. This, coupled with the fact that the pump
automatically resumes insulin when glucose levels recover, is a
real medical breakthrough.”
"Most parents have to get up two or three times a night to check
glucose levels and this might make them feel a little safer at night
time if they know they've got this automated system that's going
to prevent low glucose," he said.
Professor Jones said the technology was not limited to children.
"It's just as important in adults if they're living alone or at risk
of having problems with their glucose levels. It'll work in any
age group," he said.
Xavier's mother, Naomi, said it will have a significant impact on
her son's life. "It allows him to have more freedom with eating,"
she said. "He's only four, you can't stop a child wanting a bowl
full of pasta, at a party you can't stop a child wanting party food,
so the pump allows a lot more freedom. It also allows us to have
better control overnight; if you're up every hour overnight then
maybe you've got a good indication [of blood sugar levels] but
no parent wants to be up every hour, I can guarantee that."
After five years of clinical trials by specialists at Perth's Princess
Margaret Hospital and hospitals around Australia, the device
is now commercially available at a cost of $10,000. Professor
Jones said as the technology developed the pump will become
cheaper and more accessible.
Researchers at the hospital de