BusinessWeek, May 28, 2018 (II)

choi

(2) Michelle Cortez, A Good Kind of Shock.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/a ... ernative-to-opioids

Quote:

"a medical implant sends 10,000 pulses of low-voltage electricity through his spine per second.  The series of tiny shocks, known as neuromodulation * * * After half a century on the fringes of medical science, neuromodulation is becoming a mainstream alternative to painkillers for those who can afford it. Sales of spinal stimulators, used mainly to soothe hurting legs and backs, rose 20 percent to $1.8 billion in the U.S. last year. * * * Rami Elghandour, chief executive officer of Nevro Corp, the maker of Surkin's implant.

"The idea dates to Roman times, when people applied controlled shocks from electric fish such as the black torpedo to treat everything from migraines to gout.

"The $30,000 [HF10] implant sends waves of electricity through the spinal cord to dampen errant signals from damaged nerves. A thin wire called a lead, with an array of electrodes attached, is threaded along the spine. That’s connected to a device that includes a battery and a neurostimulator, typically implanted in the lower back. The device uses high-frequency pulses, unlike the slow, steady waves of older models.

My comment:
(a)
(i) summary underneath the title in print: Patients who once relied on heavy narcotics to treat their suffering are turning to costly surgical implants instead
(ii) Print and the online version are identical.
(b) This is the first time I heard of such a treatment, so I bring it to your attention. There is not enough scientific information, such as how it works, for me to make an independent judgment.
(c) It appears that the company sells just one medical device: HF10. The following are quotations from www.hf10.com:

(i) "HF10 isn't addictive and doesn’t cloud your thoughts, cause drowsiness or constipation like pain medications do.  

"You can try HF10 in a temporary trial and decide if it's right for you.

(ii) "Nevro is a medical device company and creator of HF10™ * * * based in Redwood City, California

(iii) What I can not understand is this website says implanting procedure is performed outpatient, and talks about trials done by physicians rather than surgeons. In the home page of www.hf10.com, in the "Why HF10" tab of top horizontal bar click "How HF10 works" and "What to expect."

(3) Marvin G Perez and Leslie Patton, Turning Coffee Trash into Treasure.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/a ... -over-coffee-itself

Note:
(a)
(i) summary underneath the title in print: The dried husk -- those in the trade call it cascara -- is now fetching a 480 percent premium over the beans themselves
(ii) Print and the online version are identical.
(b) Aida (given name)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aida_(given_name)