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A pair of studies recently featured in Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) journals are, I think, a bit creepy. First up is a study the findings of which are so intuitive I find it a tad nerve-wracking that the researchers managed to get the funding to conduct it, let alone get it published. [...]
How much dexterity and control does a doctor have when using a surgical robot? You can get a sense of it by watching this video, where the doctor folds a paper airplane using the remote manipulation system of a da Vinci surgical robot: Here is what the da Vinci surgical robot looks like from the [...]
First Full Face Transplant in the United States
by Charles W. Bryant | March 22, 2011
We did a podcast some time ago about face transplants. Medical science is pretty remarkable these days and I think the episode really highlighted some of the breakthroughs in facial reconstruction, or in this case, full transplant. At the time, there had only been one such operation performed – for a French woman who lost her face due to a very unfortunate incident with her dog. It was pretty disturbing to say the least and we heard from a lot of you who had a hard time getting through the episode.
VAC (Vacuum Assisted Closure) Therapy (also known as Negative Pressure Wound Therapy) is a fairly new technique that doctors use to speed up healing in deep wounds, surgical wounds, amputations and other wounds that don’t seem to be healing properly on their own. The following video discusses one amputee’s successful experience with VAC therapy…
This is a fascinating two-minute video that shows a new technique for lung transplants. The lungs to be transplanted are removed, perfused, repaired and exercised outside the body to get them ready for transplantation. The advantage, from the HowStuffWorks perspective, is that we get to see how lungs look, and how they inhale and exhale, [...]
Yesterday we looked at the LAP-BAND weight loss device. The post contained this video, which very nicely describes the installation procedure using Laparoscopic Surgery: Let’s say you show this video to a curious, HowStuffWorks-type person who doesn’t know anything about Laparoscopic Surgery. There are several questions that immediately pop up. Like: 1) Q: How is [...]
Everyone loves the idea of a robot surgeon. There’s the GH-7 meddroid from “Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back,” the lovable but butchering Medibot from “Look Around You,” and the occasional robot psychologist or plastic surgeon on “Futurama.” And I can only imagine Hajime Sorayama came up with some manner of silvery, sexy robot nurse, but I’m not about to Google that at work.
At any rate, hey, it looks like work on real-life robotic surgeons is progressing nicely. They might not be ready to dump you into a Bacta tank or upgrade your face, but Discovery News reports that a robotic surgeon at Duke University has successfully used an ultrasound to find a sliver of steel shrapnel and guide a needle to it — and all on its own to boot.
What’s grosser than a black, twisted umbilical cord remnant dangling from an infant’s belly just before it falls off? Very little, but I think perhaps removing organs through the belly button beats it. One more time: removing internal organs through the belly button. Good God.
The BBC reports that a British surgeon with the absurdly cool name Paraskevas Paraskeva has gotten down what he calls keyhole (or single incision laparoscopic) surgery, the belly button being the keyhole. Dr. Paraskeva has gotten so good at his procedure that he can get n appendix out of you within 20 minutes; gall bladders take about an hour. You could drop some film off, have your gall bladder removed through your navel and pick up your photos on the way home, since the surgery is outpatient.
Modern reproductive technology allows women to donate their eggs. Egg donation can be lucrative, but it’s also complicated. Tune in as Molly and Cristen discuss the details of egg donation in this podcast from HowStuffWorks.com.
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