24 November 2014, 14:50
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Say "Barev" to the Tiny Robotic Scallop

Every day, medicine becomes increasingly complex. Yet according to recent hype about a newly developed technology, it appears medicine is also becoming (strangely) smaller. The decision between traditional surgery (think: hands-on-intestine-and-organ-touching action) to multiple small punctures of laparoscopic surgery seems like an easy choice for the average joe. But for medical experts, it is reductions in recovery time and blood loss these new developments promise that really prove essential.

Now, at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Germany, another tale of science fiction is entering medicine: the possibility of wireless microsurgery and micro-drug delivery. 

No longer will drugs cure us by circulate throughout our entire body. Instead,they will be able to attack diseases at specific locations in our bodies. To put it bluntly, this is surgery, but without a single incision. 

Currently, the technology is still in its early phases and researchers haven't yet pinpointed exactly which use it will be put towards. But for the time being, it's probably safe to say a big and hearty "Barev" to the robotic scallop.

Watch the original video here: 

ORIGINAL SOURCE: Nature

Picture: Alejandro Posada/MPI-IS

 

Aram Bedrosyan is a Birthright Armenia volunteer living in Yerevan who, before coming to Armenia, graduated from University of Massachusetts Amherst in Neuroscience and Public Health. His volunteer placement is within the country's healthcare system and he is currently devising proposals to promote and raise awareness about health-related issues in the community. 

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