London paramedics test portable brain scanner

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Thursday 31 Dec 2015 - 14:24 Makkah mean time-20-3-1437 London, (IINA) - Air transport paramedics in England are testing a hand-held brain scanner that may be helpful in diagnosing brain injuries before the patient gets to the hospital, which would allow doctors to better prepare before patients arrive and potentially preventing the wrong treatment from being applied en route, UPI reported. London's Air Ambulance has used the ‘InfraScanner’ on 60 patients during a trial this year, which may precede a larger rollout to emergency personnel after it ends in early 2016, provided the device shows an ability to provide better care. The InfraScanner was developed by InfraScan and the US Navy and Marine Corps to detect brain hematoma on the battlefield. The device was approved by the Food and Drug Administration for marketing in the United States in 2013. Doctors at London's Air Ambulance said the device has special potential for use because 60 percent of the 1,806 patients they treated in 2014 were involved in traffic accidents or high falls, which often cause head injuries. "It is really important to be able to find out what is going on inside a patient's head, and get a clearer picture of any injuries sustained", said Mark Wilson, a consultant neurosurgeon at Imperial College London and doctor for London's Air Ambulance. "By doing this during the transfer to hospital, we hope to be able to expedite treatments, such as surgery, by knowing in advance what type of brain injury the patient has". The device takes about two minutes to scan for bleeding on the brain, which doctors at London's Air Ambulance said allows them to know which treatments to use and which to avoid, as well as offer doctors at the hospital more information about a patient's condition before arrival. Wilson told the BBC that the device could have a significant impact if adopted by London's Air Ambulance and other emergency medical services. "Head injuries are fairly common, and currently, we manage all patients in the same way as we can't tell what's going on inside your head", he said. AG/IINA