10 Mind-blowing Medical Gadgets That Are Likely in Your Future

[xchrom]

http://www.alternet.org/personal-health/10-mind-blowing-medical-gadgets-are-likely-your-future



1. The iKnife

The iKnife, developed by Dr. Zoltan Takats of Imperial College London, uses heat to make incisions during surgery. The heat serves to seal the wound, resulting in much less blood loss. The iKnife actually analyzes chemicals in the smoke from the singed tissue and can tell the surgeon in real time if the tissue is malignant. This amazing new tool will potentially vastly reduce the amount of time surgeries take.

2. Mind-Controlled Contact Lenses

Google Glass, the smart glasses that wearers use to access the Internet, take photos and record video, may piss off lots of people. But the naysayers better get used to it, because by the time Glass becomes commonplace, contact lenses that are capable of the same feats will be available. More amazing, these lenses could be controlled not by gestures or head nods, but by the mind. This technology will no doubt spur its own furor, since, unlike Glass, people will have no idea if the person they're talking is wearing the augmented contacts and whether they are being recorded, photographed, or even heard.

3. 3D-Printed Prescription Drugs and Body Parts

In the not–too-distant future, 3D printers won’t just create cheap plastic doodads and hard-to-detect firearms; they will be capable of creating a whole new way to obtain prescription drugs. Dr. Lee Cronin of the University of Glasgow has been working on a molecular level 3D printer that can assemble chemical molecules into medicines. "What Apple did for music, Cronin said at TedGlobal 2012, "I'd like to do for the discovery and distribution of prescription drugs." You would go online with your digital prescription, download the blueprint for the drug and print it out on your handy-dandy molecular 3D printer. Drugs could be customized to the needs of a particular patient. The 3D printer will also come in handy when you need a new ear, bone or other body part. Dr. Michael McAlpine of Princeton has already produced a bionic ear with the capability of picking up radio waves. Kidneys and other useful body parts aren’t far behind.

4. Smart Pills and Pill Bottles

Most of us have, at one time or another, forgotten to take a pill we were supposed to take, or worried that our parents or children forgot to take their medication. That won’t be a worry in the future. How about a pill bottle that glows blue when it's time to take your pill and red when you forget to take it? AdhereTech has already invented the smart pill bottle. While it sounds creepy, a sensor in the pill that transmits information to your family member or doctor when you take the pill is also on the way.

[DetlefK]

1. Mish-mash of existing technologies and wishful thinking. And some things got left out.

Hollow nanoparticles delivering medicine straight to the cancer? Prototype-stage reached. Not mentioned in article.

Bionic replacements for failing bodyparts? Eyes and limbs are already on sale. Not mentioned in article.

3D-printing a bone-replacement? Already done. Not mentioned in article.

3D-bioprinting a skin-graft or other simple tissues? Prototype-stage reached. Not mentioned in article.

3D-bioprinting inner organs? Possible, but they are not suitable for implantation yet. Not mentioned in article.

[Gothmog]

2. cool article

Thanks for posting