From November 20 until 23, 2013, Düsseldorf in Germany was host to the world’s largest medical fair, the Medica. I was happy to take a few days to browse the 17 exposition halls exhibiting new products and developments in medical technology, diagnostics, information and communication technology and medical services and publications (and more). More than 4,500 exhibitors meant good preparation before travelling to Düsseldorf and carefully selecting which halls and stands to visit.
A number of innovative products were presented at Medica for the first time, amongst them a new kit by the Canadian company Diagnostics Biochem Canada, to diagnose high blood pressure resistant to the usual treatments with medications or through lifestyle changes. With the many risks of high blood pressure in mind, this is a very important development, not just nationally but globally.
One of my most interesting visits were those to a number of producers of automated external defibrillators. There are many sellers on the market, not all products are available on the Swiss market but amongst my favourites were those by Nihon Kohden. Their AEDs have a simple switch to chafe from adult mode to paediatric (child) mode, which means separate paediatric defibrillators pads are no longer required. This type of defibrillator is ideal for schools and day care facilities. Another favourite of mine was the Schiller Fred easyport defibrillator, the smallest portable defibrillator, a true pocket defibrillator. It’s so small, it fits in your pocket and thus is ideal for physicians or risk patients to carry with them. You want to know more and learn more about it, contact me for a CPR & AED training session using Fred easyport.
I also browsed through all the providers of nebulisers, and there were many of them. I learnt that in Italy the use of nebulisers is very common and well promoted and marketed, hence there were many italian products. I was very happy to see them well represented and got some great information to bring back. Companies like Salter, Omron or MPV Medical are just a few of the names. The visit at their stand was one of the most exciting ones as they are in the process of launching a computer based training game for inhalation therapy for children. I had the opportunity to play it and can only applaud such an invention.
The IT halls were incredibly busy and really interesting, too. My favourite here, the “Wearable Technologies” show. Another Swiss company impressed me: CSEM. Their CEO’s motto “innovation is not an option, it’s a necessity” has led to “simple, inexpensive and reliable solutions for non-invasive monitoring of the interior of the human body”. iHealth Lab from China have developed an app to track and transmit data for blood pressure, heart rate, body weight, steps taken and much more. Great for the iPhone or iPad fan! A stop at the Withings stand was another must to look at their non-invasive health tracking options such as their activity tracker or their baby monitor.
Those were two busy days, learning a lot and seeing a lot and I am already looking forward to my next visit, that time focussing on the Medica Education Conference.
Posted on November 25, 2013 by Luitgard Holzleg
This entry was posted in Blog and tagged 2013, apps, blood pressure, body weight, compamed, CSEM, defibrillators, development, diagnostics, Düsseldorf, Fred easyport, heart rate, iHealth, medica, medica education conference, medical fair, MPV Medical, nebuliser, Nihon Kohden, Omron, Salter, Schiller, wearable technologies, weight tracking, Withings. Bookmark the permalink.