At the Vancouver 2010 Winter Paralympics, GE health care has debuted the MAC 800 ECG, a portable ECG (electrocardiograph), to help assist physician care to athletes and trainers during the Games.

Not a gadget we usually cover on GetConnected but when you consider that a full size ECG usually weights around 65 pounds and this portable, briefcase-sized one weights less than seven pounds, you realize it's a big feat of technology.

The MAC 800 ECG means that patients don't always have to visit the hospital and response times/diagnosis can be much faster. It enables a physician to get immediate information regarding the overall health and status of a patient's heart. The data can be exported into files (ie: pdf, xml) and immediately sent to any medical institution for further examination. The MAC 800 features a keypad with a T9 SMS-style mobile phone keypad design for a user friendly interface.

Health Canada gave the device the ok, while it's been utilized in the US for several months. MAC 800 was originally developed for the Chinese market, but has been adapted to market Canada and US.