Abstract: The present invention provides a new and improved positioning device for stabilizing a subject on an operation table without a clinician's manual fitting. The inventive positioning device comprises a mattress/pad with a shell filled with a substance and a vacuum outlet on the sidewall of the shell. The invention also provides a warming device for preventing hypothermia of a subject on an operation table. The inventive warming device comprises a single cavity or an array of closed cuboid cavities contained in a shell and filled with a phase change material (PCM) in a form of liquid, and a triggering means for activating nucleation of the phase change material, which leads to an exothermic crystallization of the material to start the heat emission. The invention further provides a combination device that performs positioning and warming functions simultaneously.

Abstract: An example system for detecting an analyte in a sample of a bodily fluid comprises a test chamber having at least one sidewall and configured to contain at least a portion of a bodily fluid sample, an excitation electromagnetic energy source configured to direct an energy source into the test chamber through the at least one sidewall and to induce a thermoelastic expansion in the one or more analytes, and a sensor configured to detect said thermoelastic expansion in the bodily fluid sample in the test chamber, the sensor configured to measure changes in optical reflectance that result from the thermoelastic expansion.

Abstract: An example method for detecting an analyte in a sample of a bodily fluid includes the steps of exposing the bodily fluid sample to electromagnetic energy to cause a thermoelastic expansion in the analyte, and detecting a photoacoustic signal in the sample that results from the thermoelastic expansion.

Abstract: An example method for detecting an analyte in a sample of a bodily fluid comprises the steps of exposing the bodily fluid sample to electromagnetic energy to cause a thermoelastic expansion in the analyte, and detecting a photoacoustic signal in the sample that results from the thermoelastic expansion.

Abstract: An example method for detecting an analyte in a sample of a bodily fluid comprises the steps of exposing the bodily fluid sample to electromagnetic energy to cause a thermoelastic expansion in the analyte, and detecting a photoacoustic signal in the sample that results from the thermoelastic expansion.

Abstract: A preferred system for detecting an analyte in solid tissue, such as an intact lymph node, in vitro includes a laser arranged to generate a pulsed laser beam into solid tissue, which can be a fully intact lymph node. An acoustic sensor, and preferably at least three acoustic sensors are arranged in different positions to span a three dimensional space, such as in an X, Y and Z coordinate system, to detect photoacoustic signals generated within the lymph node. At least one computer receives signals from the acoustic sensor(s). The computer determines the presence or absence of, and preferably the position of analyte, from the signals and the timing of the signals. A preferred method for detecting an analyte in a lymph node in vitro includes exposing an extracted lymph node to a pulsed laser beam. A photoacoustic signal is sensed. The photoacoustic signal is analyzed to confirm the presence or absence of an analyte in the lymph node.

Abstract: An example system for detecting an analyte in a sample of a bodily fluid comprises a test chamber having at least one sidewall and configured to contain at least a portion of a bodily fluid sample, an excitation electromagnetic energy source configured to direct an energy source into the test chamber through the at least one sidewall and to induce a thermoelastic expansion in the one or more analytes, and a sensor configured to detect said thermoelastic expansion in the bodily fluid sample in the test chamber, the sensor configured to measure changes in optical reflectance that result from the thermoelastic expansion.

Abstract: An example method for detecting an analyte in a sample of a bodily fluid comprises the steps of exposing the bodily fluid sample to electromagnetic energy to cause a thermoelastic expansion in the analyte, and detecting a photoacoustic signal in the sample that results from the thermoelastic expansion.