Product Briefs
Product Briefs
• Biomerica (Newport Beach, CA) said it intends to acquire the domain name of TheBigRx.com. The company said it plans to form an alliance with the "Big" group of online companies and will leverage the traffic and capabilities of TheBigHub.com meta-search engine. Additionally, TheBigHub will make a strategic investment in Biomerica. The letter of intent is subject to, among other things, the execution of definitive agreements. TheBigHub.com (www.thebighub.com) is a network of branded, affiliate sites designed to leverage the traffic and capabilities of the iSleuth (www.isleuth.com) meta-search engine, allowing users to simultaneously search multiple search engines, web directories, and news databases on one site. Biomerica develops and markets advanced medical diagnostic products.
• Cardima (Fremont, CA) has initiated an online ordering function allowing hospitals and cardiologists to purchase its microcatheter systems via the Internet. The web site, at www.cardima.com, also allows customers and patients to view procedure animations, review products and instructions for use, visualize product system setup, and now place orders.
• DCC (Westport, CT), a provider of work/life information and resources, has released LifeCare Net, version 4.0, featuring new health, financial and parenting content from national providers, as well as increased site functionality. With these updates, LCN 4.0 features access to a database of nearly three million providers and resources nationwide, plus information on more than 10,000 topics across a wide range of critical communities, including prenatal, adoption, child care, education, parenting, financial, and health and wellness. By logging on to LCN 4.0, covered employees can access daily news from a national health information service, featuring new and archived coverage of health and wellness news and issues. Users can also access nearly 5,000 library articles on pediatrics, adult health, senior health, women’s health, behavioral health, and medications, provided by leading suppliers of medical educational information.
• IMS Health (London) has launched FASTview, a research tool that enables pharmaceutical and healthcare companies to perform physician research over the Internet and obtain survey results within 24 hours. Developed in partnership with Physicians’ Online (Tarrytown, NY), FASTview features a large database of prescriber-level profiling information, combined with POL’s Internet access to 200,000 U.S. physicians. This targeting capability allows pharmaceutical companies to create customized samples that focus on the high-value physician audience for their research needs.
• iVillage.com’s (Santa Clara, CA) health channel, Better Health, has introduced a Virtual Check-up area on its web site (www.betterhealth.com/virtualcheckup/). iVillage created the application in conjunction with Superscape, an Interactive 3-D software solution. Superscape’s Content Solutions Group designed the Virtual Check-up using Superscape VRT, authoring software. Browsers on the site can download the Superscape 3-D browser, Superscape Viscape, and then either interact with or watch a presentation of relevant examination techniques and procedures. For breast examination, for example, visitors can learn how to carry out the examination themselves, viewing the procedure from any angle. Though not designed to replace actual health checks, the site is an online community for women can discuss and learn more about their health.
• MDS Panlabs (Bothell, WA) has launched Panlabs Express, a limited-access web site that gives clients immediate access to their pharmacology testing data reports. The online reports also can be imported into a client database system to provide the latest data for drug development decision making.
• Molecular Applications Group (Palo Alto, CA) has completed development of the first component of its Stingray Expression Analysis System. The component, called Stingray GeneMine, combines the GeneChip Data Mining Tool, a package for expression analysis from Affymetrix (Santa Clara, CA), with Molecular’s GeneMine, a stand-alone software product that uses both public and Molecular proprietary algorithms to evaluate gene sequence, structure, and function.
• A comprehensive CD-ROM database which compiles information on suppliers of medical devices, hazard reports and test results is currently being piloted in Germany, Britain, Italy, Portugal, Greece and Cyprus. The project is modeled after MedPro, a CD-ROM which is distributed quarterly by TNO Prevention and Health (Leiden, the Netherlands) to Dutch healthcare institutions. MedPro provides subscribers with detailed information on available medical equipment as well as test results on quality, usefulness and safety of devices. According to TNO engineer Chris van Nimwegen, around half of all Dutch hospitals receive the CD-ROM. TNO has developed a demo CD-ROM of the proposed European database called Euro-MedPro, which is currently limited to defibrillators. It includes data from various European countries and features full database functionality. User interface language on the demo CD-ROM can be available in English, German, Italian, Dutch and Greek with others to come. The database has been developed under the auspices of the EU-sanctioned Biomedical Equipment Assessment and Management (BEAM) project, of which TNO is a member.
• VIDAR Systems (Herndon, VA) has formed a supplier alliance with StorCOMM (Jacksonville, FL). Under the arrangement, VIDAR’s film digitizers will be integrated into StorCOMM systems. The digitizers include the HD-CCD, the DiagnosticPro, and the TeleRadPro.
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