Medicine  

Robot use is a very important consideration for the future of medicine, helping to treat patients and improve the overall healthcare system.

Robotic technology is currently being applied in most health facilities with the aim of improving healthcare. This technology has produced positive results on the patients who are suffering from numerous complications and robotic technology is now seen as one of the best options of treating problems such as spinal cord injury.

About robotic technology

Robotic technology can offer solutions to a significant proportion of problems affecting patients such stroke sufferers, amputees and those with mental problems. By 2025, much more medical robotic technology innovation is expected. However, there are four application areas which are on the near horizon and cover a big field of the healthcare. They include:

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• -Development in diagnostics which can be realized through the evolution of multi-functional endoscopic capsule.

• -A revolution in the surgery by robotic systems.

• -Robotic systems in the nursing care so as to support the work of individual professional.

• -Greater independence and autonomy for people with disabilities at home. This can be achieved through introduction of the domestic robots which will be used first for monitoring and later for the support tasks.

Image Source - Wikipedia

It is important to understand that robot systems are very complex in the sense that not all of the required knowledge is available at the right level. This complexity exists in terms of the technologies which have to be fully integrated into a single device and also in terms of the regulation and the implementation in the healthcare. It is vital for many stakeholders to cooperate in the new roles and to take initiatives in supporting the application of robotic technology in the healthcare system.

There are several ethical issues which are also important in relation to robotic technology in healthcare, like the substitution of human contact by machine contact, privacy, and the outcome parameters for the therapeutic interactions of the robots with some patients who have mental disabilities. The concerns surrounding ethical issues needs to be translated into outcome criteria during the development process.

Benefits of Robotic technology in healthcare

• -Robot systems now play a key role in improving the life of people with the spinal cord injuries.

• -This technology also helps in treating patients with mental or cognitive problems

• -Robotic systems are also useful in helping to counteract the shortage of medical personnel.

Healthcare challenges arising from Robotic technology

Many technological and scientific developments are taking place which have raised very high expectations among the public concerning the benefits of the robotic applications in healthcare. Besides that, many of these developments have been linked to the numerous challenges:

• -Robotic systems are difficult to operate on a regular basis and they are also quite expensive. 

• -There are also doubts on whether this new application of the robot system is just but a replacement of the older procedures.

• -There is also a challenge of the limited spread of these robots despite this technology being a field which is really promising.

Actions to be undertaken so as to ensure the success of Robot technology:

• -Robotic systems in healthcare is still in its infancy and research still needs to be undertaken

• -The need to bridge the complex transition from the laboratories to trials and then from trials to the regular healthcare practice.

• -Robot assisted cognitive and social therapy needs to be undertaken.

Robot use is a very important consideration for the future of medicine and can be applied in order to help to treat patients and improve the healthcare system.

By Hannah Brooklyn

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Author bio: Hannah Brooklyn is a student from United Kingdom who loves to travel and write on Health and travel niche. Educating people on Healthy Lifestyles is her keen interest. She engages in all types of outdoor adventure, explores the local way of life. Presently working on Ehic

 Medicine  

Medical clinical trials with human participants start with a small group and then expand to a larger group of people before a new treatment is approved. Here is some information on the process that is commonplace for all our medication and medical procedures.

Clinical trials are one of the final stages of development for medical innovations before they can be used on the general public. Clinical trials involving humans are necessary because our bodies does not always react the same way to medical treatments as animals do, although animal studies are conducted first to attempt to determine if the treatment will be harmful.

Trials with human participants start with a small group and then expand to a larger group of people before a new treatment is approved. Here we will explore the process that is commonplace for all our medication and medical procedures.

Basic Clinical Trial Groups

For a study to be effective, there must be both a treatment group, who receives the new treatment, and a control group, who does not, so the groups can be compared. Clinical trials either show that the new medical advancement improves patient outcomes, causes harm to patients, or has no effect at all.

The first phase of a clinical trial determines if a treatment is safe. The second phase determines if the treatment is effective, while the third phase determines if the treatment is more effective or has fewer side effects than currently available treatments for the same condition.

History of Clinical Trials

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The idea behind a clinical trial has been around for thousands of years. The Book of Daniel, found in the Old Testament of the Bible and believed to have been written between 167 and 164 B.C., describes an experiment in which one group of participants ate the “King's meat” for a period of time while the other group did not. The Persian physician Avicenna gave similar advice during the 11th century.

More recently, Lady Montagu gave condemned men a prototype of the smallpox vaccination in exchange for their lives, although her experiment did not contain a control group. The inventor of the smallpox vaccine, Edward Jenner, also tested the efficacy of his vaccine on the eight-year-old son of his gardener, but his experiment was also flawed by modern standards.

Development of New Treatments

Clinical trials are essential to the development of new treatments. Without them, there could be no advancements in the field of medicine. If new treatments were developed, they may be ineffective or harmful without the information learned from clinical trials. Participants of a clinical study involving an investigatory treatment can be assured that they are contributing to the future of medicine and possibly helping to improve the outcome of others with the same medical condition in the future.

In addition to benefiting the field of medicine, clinical trial participants also receive expert medical care and cutting-edge treatments, often at a reduced cost. For example, some studies even compensate participants for their time and travel expenses like this modern bunion removal study in Utah. These, and other, incentives lead many willing participants to participate in studies for the betterment of mankind. Preliminary clinical trials are an effective method to determine if a drug or procedure should be available to the public.

By Meghan Belnap

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 The Singularity  

At a recent TEDx talk, Dr. Jonathan White looked at some of the unforeseen consequences of the rapid technological change we are experiencing - the unexpected societal, medical, and philosophical issues that we now must consider.

Would you upload your personality if you could? What do you think of the possibility of living without a physical body? Dr. Jonathan White addresses a reality that is not so far off as we might think - and what the ethical and philosophical implications of this future might be in his recent TEDx Talk.

"Whatever happens as technology advances, its going to be very interesting."

White has attended Singularity University, and has presented a critical talk of the organization.  He claims he hasn't completely bought into the idea of the promising future that the institution presents, but appears to still be considering what the Singularity is, and what the future will be like a lot.

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During his talk, White examines some of the unforeseen consequences of the rapid technological change we are experiencing - the unexpected societal, medical, and philosophical issues that we now must consider.

White presents a good overview of the Singularity, with particular attention to the future of medicine.  He looks at five ways we may transcend our biology in the future: augmentation, via advanced prosthetics; controlling the body, via understanding it at a molecular level; backing ourselves up, by uploading ourselves to independent substrates; eventual abandoning our bodies to robotic avatars.

"The last way is where we get really trippy," states White.  As for the extended and spiritual elements discussed by Ray Kurzweil and others about the post-Singularity world, where the space-time continuum is saturated with intelligence and consciousness, White confesses, "this is the hardest part of [The Singularity Is Near] for me, because I don't really understand what he is talking about."

"Whatever happens as technology advances, its going to be very interesting," says White.

White, originally from Northern Ireland, is a surgeon at the Royal Alexandra Hospital. Dr. White is a renowned teacher, and has won numerous awards for his innovative and creative approach, including being the first surgeon ever selected as a 3M National Teaching Fellow, an honor bestowed in 2014.


SOURCE  TEDx Edmonton

By 33rd Square

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 Medicine  

Recent discoveries are definitely going to have a dramatic impact on healthcare in the next decade. There are five medical innovations that are transforming the way we fight disease and deal with medical issues.

The future of medicine is now. Recent discoveries are definitely going to have a dramatic impact on healthcare in the next decade. There are five medical innovations that are transforming the way we fight disease and deal with medical issues. Details about each one are below.

Medical technology companies are focusing more than ever on products that deliver less expensive, faster, more efficient medical care.

Immunotherapy  

Scientists have discovered a way to harness the power of your immune system to fight disease. A drug called MK3475 is being investigated for anti-PD-1 immunotherapy. Cancerous tumors often protect themselves by taking over the body’s natural brake for the immune system. MK3475 releases the brake and unleashes immune cells to hunt down the cancer.

DNA Sequencing  

DNA Sequencing devices are the same size as a cellphone. Nanapore Sequencing devices accelerate efforts to make gene sequencing a regular part of a physical exam. The technology measures changes in the electrical part of a molecule. An Oxford University scientific adviser is working on a nanopore device that will use fluorescent signals to read DNA information.

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Building Brain Cells 

Researchers have found a way to turn pee into human brain cells. Biologists in China have taken cells from urine and modified them by using retroviruses to create progenitor cells. The body uses the cells as building blocks for brain cells. The best benefit of getting cells through this method is urine is almost always freely available.

3D Printed Bones 

Scientists at Washington State University have developed hybrid material that has the same features as real bone. It is made from zinc, silicon and calcium phosphate. They use a 3D printer to create the material and place the model in the body at the site of a fracture. Meanwhile the real bone grows up and around it. The model disintegrates once the process is complete. The benefit of this method is any tissue could be grown with 3D printers.

DNA Legos 

One of the most exciting new medical innovations is DNA Legos. Engineers at Harvard University are using DNA as building blocks. These nano-sized Legos build structures and are a useful way for the engineers to visualize what they are creating. DNA is coded with the letters a, T, G and C. They have created a DNA strand that contains 2 of each letter similar to the Lego pegs. The research possibilities appear to be endless.

Biodegradable Polymers 

With technology taking off in the medical field you can be sure to see more and more biodegradable polymers being used in everything from surgery to extended release capsules. Biodegradable polymers are used mainly in the fields of tissue engineering and drug delivery. Imagine a plastic-like substance being placed in your body to help the regeneration process and then dissolving after a set amount of time. The ultimate goal of tissue engineering is the creation of actual organs. There are places that aredeveloping biomedical polymers for medical devices around the world and this is a fast growing and dynamic field.

Engineers and scientists continue to push through innovative ideas for improving and managing human health. Many medical technology companies are focusing more than ever on products that deliver less expensive, faster, more efficient medical care.

By Meghan Belnap

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