Technology will save our minds and bodies

TECHNOLOGY WILL SAVE OUR MINDS AND BODIES

By Mark Power

Technology has played an important medical role in the lives of people all over the world. Technology is the reason many people are still alive today. With the development of new cures and new vaccines, technology will continue to allow people to live longer and healthier lives. With the advancement of medicine through new technological inventions that help diagnose, monitor, repair and treat injuries and infections, people can expect to live normal lives.

A TIMELINE OF SOME OF THE GREATEST MEDICAL ADVANCEMENTS

http://www.timetoast.com/timelines/medical-advances-timeline

SOME OF THE NEW TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS IN THE MEDICAL FIELD FOR

2012

origami Paper Analytical Device or oPAD

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The oPAD, is a new paper sensor device that can detect various

diseases or biological agents. The new paper sensor is printed on an ordinary office printer, where using chromatograph paper, a hydrophobic material like wax is laid down to direct the sample to the spot on the paper embedded with the test reagents. This new paper sensor can be used to test blood, saliva, urine and other fluids for glucose, malaria, HIV or any other disease. This is already the same process used in pregnancy tests. The origami Paper Analytical Device, which it is known as because it resembles origami, is a much better sensor than those used in pregnancy tests due to the limitations of the pregnancy test paper. With the origami sensor, the paper is folded into a 3D shape which Richard Crooks says allows for a test of more substances in a smaller surface area and provides results for more complex tests.

Pros• Costs 10 cents per sensor• Can test for more substances on a small surface• Allows people access to these sorts of tests who to not have the

resources to pay• Easily produced • Useful where the infrastructure is not present to collect and transport old

style samples to a lab

Cons• No foreseeable cons

ConclusionThis medical advancement in technology that can help diagnose for different dieses or deficiencies is a very important technological advancement. People can now be diagnosed for some disease without having to travel to a laboratory that performs these sorts of tests. This would be especially helpful to people of the developing world who do not have access to those facilities necessary to diagnose their issues. The most important part of this new medical invention is that the cost is so low, 10 cents a test, to receive the correct medical diagnosis.

I-BESS (Integrated Blast Effects Sensor Suite) system

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZsPHMS4PSYI&feature=player_embedded

The US Army has come out with a new suit for their soldiers to wear that will measure the impacts of explosions and trauma to the human body through sensors that are implanted in the soldier’s body suit and inside the armoured vehicle they are driving in. This suit is called the I-BESS for Integrated Blast Effects Sensor Suit system. This system is a system made up of four sensors in the body suit that communicate with each other as well as a vehicle based system that has additional sensors to collect information. Through wireless communication this data is transferred in real time to a data storage system called the Joint Trauma Analysis and Prevention of Injury in Combat where it can be examined and accessed by medical professionals. With the I-BESS system the Army can help identify those soldiers with a greater chance for asymptomatic injuries often of the brain but also help improve body armour and develop other mitigation strategies. This body suit should lead to the diagnosis of more injuries that would otherwise go untreated because they are injuries that you cannot see.

Pros• Better injury diagnosis• Leads to better trauma care• Leads to armour improvement

Cons• Only a recording system, does not protect the soldiers

ConclusionThis medical advancement in technology can help diagnose for different injuries to soldiers when they are attacked or near explosions on the battlefield. This new equipment will help medical staff identify injured soldiers before they have even returned back to base. The results from this new technology will also be beneficial to improving body armour and vehicle armour due to the data obtained from the sensors embedded in the body armour and vehicles.

Aquamantys3 BSC 9.1S Bipolar Sealer with Cutting for Orthopaedic Surgery

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The Aquamanty’s BSC 9.1S Bipolar Sealer is a surgical instrument that is used as a cutting tool as well as a sealing tool for surgical operations. This instrument is a device that performs haemostatic sealing and coagulation of soft tissue and bone as well as allows the surgeon to use it as a cutting instrument. This new invention is designed to save time during surgery as well as minimize blood loss. The Bipolar Sealer allows the surgeon to save valuable seconds while blood is flowing by not having to switch between different instruments. This instrument allows the surgeon to reduce their operating time by reducing the number of tool changes, which translates to surgeons being able to perform on more patients in a day. This instrument has also been linked to the reduction of blood transfusion rates and decreased hospital stays due to reduced blood loss and maintaining patient hemoglobin levels during surgery.

Pros• Instrument allows surgeons to save time during surgeries and see

more patients• Reduces blood loss• Decreased hospital stay time after surgeries,

Cons• Access to instrument

ConclusionThis medical advancement in technology can help surgeons to save time while performing surgeries. The new instrument will reduce blood loss during operations thus requiring less blood transfusions which translates to a saving in the hospital’s blood stocks. This technology is a great advancement, it takes two very important tools in surgery and combines them into one tool which will significantly decrease the amount of time required to switch between tools while performing operations.

micro-swimmer

http://www.gatech.edu/inc/hgImage.php?nid=144371&f=medium

Georgia Tech researchers have used computer modeling to design microrobots, a tiny robot that can swim inside the human circulator system, which may allow for a new delivery system for drugs, genes and other therapies. The robots cannot be designed using traditional propulsion methods like propellers, so the design of them was important. The microrobots are designed with a guiding flap on the front and two power flaps on the back attached to a chunk of gel. The gel is a special kind of gel, delivering the desired medium which can be made responsive to different stimuli found in the human body such as; heat, chemical changes of the environment or light. Though this technology is in the starting stages of research, the idea could help save many lives by being able to target certain areas in the body directly by directing the medicine to that exact spot.

Pros• Allow for local treatment and administration of medicine• Ability to reach anywhere in the body

Cons• Necessary size requirements• In body propulsion system• Not physically real yet, still in research/design phase

ConclusionThis medical advancement in technology will be a very important advancement. With the ability to target a certain region of the body and use delivery system through the body to delivery medicine or other mediums to that exact location is a major break through in medicine. Having the ability to control where to target would allow for people to take these microrobots into their bodies and have them perform the work of delivering the medium instead of taking a pill and hoping it works like we do now. With this new technology, I think it will only pave the way for more advancements in the delivery of medicine inside the human body.

REFERENCES

Armstrong-Moore, E. (2012). Origami paper sensor could detect malaria, HIV for 10 cents. CBS Interactive. Retrieved from http://news.cnet.com/8301-27083_3-57393611-247/origami-paper-sensor-could-detect-malaria-hiv-for-10-cents/

Oppenheimer, D. (2012). Origami-inspired Paper Sensor could test for malaria and HIV for less than 10 cents, report chemists. University of Texas at Austin. Retrieved from http://www.utexas.edu/news/2012/03/08/origami_malaria_hiv

Ostrovsky, G. (2012). I-BESS battlefield blast detection system to help detect soldier injuries. Retrieved from http://medgadget.com/2012/08/i-bess-battlefield-blast-detection-system-to-help-detect-soldier-injuries-video.html

Ostrovsky, G. (2012). Medtronic’s BSC 9.1s bipolar sealer with cutting for orthopaedic surgery detection system to help detect soldier injuries. Retrieved from http://medgadget.com/2012/08/medtronics-bsc-9-1s-bipolar-sealer-with-cutting-for-orthopaedic-surgery.html

Ostrovsky, G. (2012). Tiny microrobots to swim with therapeutic payloads. Retrieved from http://medgadget.com/2012/08/tiny-microrobots-to-swim-with-therapeutic-payloads.html