Pharmaceutical

Every technological discovery aims to improve our health, safety, and quality of life. Every day, we marvel over exciting new developments that emerge from each corner of the globe. A few weeks ago, we looked at seven of the most significant pharmacological discoveries, and this week, we want to expand our exploration into great technology that help diagnose or treat disease and improve health. As we find ourselves increasingly immersed in advanced digital technology, we’re introduced to new discoveries that sound almost as if they came straight out of a [...]

Optalert revolutionises pharmaceutical research with in-clinic test for wakefulness. Richmond, VIC: Optalert is pleased to introduce its latest wakefulness detection technology to the pharmaceutical industry for use during clinical drug trials. Optalert’s technology enhances clinical testing by offering pharmaceutical researchers an objective, measurable and real-time scale of drowsiness in addition to the alternative wakefulness, common outcomes and/or side effects measured in pharmaceutical drug trials. A highly sensitive LED camera fitted in Optalert’s glasses tracks eyelid movement, speed and blink frequency at a rate of 500 times per second. Results are [...]

It is estimated global pharmaceutical company Johnson and Johnson employs more than 127,000 people. And in the US alone more than 800,000 people work in the pharmaceutical industry developing, testing, and producing drugs for a range of medical ailments. From vaccinations and Insulin to contraception, each medication must face scrutiny and assessment through vigilant testing and trials. Side effects and health risks are assessed through various trial stages. Once a drug is approved for use, it is then marketed and sold. Fast facts about the pharmaceutical industry The industry achieved [...]

As science and medicine progresses, the research community has had an incredible effect on life expectancy and I’ve looked at seven of the greatest discoveries to impact human health. ALS/MND breakthroughs Year discovered: 2016 and 2017 Remember the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that flooded social media back in 2014? The impact was huge: People shared more than 1.2 million Ice Bucket Challenge videos on Facebook It received more than 2.2 million mentions on Twitter Wikipedia’s ALS page grew from an average of 160,000 views per month to 2.89 million in [...]

Using Optalert’s Johns Drowsiness Scale (JDS), various studies and trials have accurately measured a user’s state of alertness and drowsiness. In the study below, first published in 2008, we understand the effect of caffeine on already-alert people using the precision and sensitivity of Optalert’s patented JDS technology. By identifying a direct link to human alertness, we gain a quantifiable measure of wakefulness, literally putting a number on how drowsy or alert you are (not just how alert or tired you may feel). Publication: Michael, N., Johns, M., Owen, C, Patterson, [...]

There is no doubt sleep plays a vital role in your overall health and wellbeing. When you aren’t getting enough good quality sleep it can impact your short- and long-term health. As we discuss regularly, there are many ways to improve the quality of sleep and in this blog we’re looking at the impact of exercise. The benefits of exercise It’s clear that exercise offers many benefits, from health and mood to sleep and stress. Lifts mood No matter how much you dread walking into the gym, there’s no denying [...]

Given what we know about the negative impact on your health if you aren’t sleeping well, sleeping tablets may help. However, there can be a real stigma attached to the notion of sleeping tablets. A possible reason for this stigma is that when we read about sleeping pills, it is often attached to a negative story of misuse. Nevertheless, if used correctly there could be significant benefits to the individual’s health and well-being. What do sleeping tablets do? Sleeping tablets are designed to induce drowsiness. They are usually short-acting and [...]

No matter how many times we discuss it, it seems some people still dismiss the extreme effect drowsiness or sleep deprivation can have on our health, mind and cognitive actions. In fact, sleep deprivation has been used as a form of torture throughout history. Think that sounds absurd? Read the dark stories and make up your own mind… Witch hunters in Scotland In 16th century Scotland, civilians participated in several nationwide witch hunts. At the height of sorcery and witch hysteria, women who allegedly practised witchcraft were captured and trialled. [...]

Fatigue in health care is a reality. Granted, most of us feel tired at the end of the workday or workweek, no matter our profession but there are additional stresses placed on people working in the healthcare industry. So we shouldn’t really be shocked to read that with all the long hours and hard work healthcare professionals put in day in and day out, they are often feeling the effects of fatigue. Nursing rosters are irregular While conducting research for this article, I found many nurses on various forums and [...]

Earlier this month, I looked at the immediate effects of sleep deprivation – these short-term effects can set in even after just one night of poor sleep. They included forgetfulness, distraction, irritability (we’ve all felt grouchy after a bad night’s sleep), and impaired reaction times. You can read that blog post here. Before you know it, one bad sleep has turned into three, and now, those poor quality sleeps are creeping their way into your schedule on a weekly basis. Whether it’s shift work, an undiagnosed sleep condition, or a [...]