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Researchers develop a polymer sponge to repair broken backs
Researchers at the Mayo Clinic have developed a novel spinal graft that automatically "grows" to the requisite size and shape when implanted. The spongy polymer isn't meant to be a formal replacement like the 3D printed neck bones recently installed by a team from the Prince of Wales Hospital in Sydney. Instead, it's designed to act as a bone graft -- a biodegradable scaffold through which a cancer patient's own bones can regrow after surgery.
EyeForcer wants to force your kids to sit up straight
The rise in smartphone use has created a new spinal condition that's called "tech neck," or "gameboy disease." All of that time hunched over our devices, shoulders forward, has caused people to develop serious spinal issues. Dr. Vahid Sahiholnasab is hoping to prevent a whole generation of tweens becoming incapable of looking upwards by developing EyeForcer, a wearable gadget that forces kids to maintain good posture. How can a gadget force good behavior in children? By threatening their play time if they don't behave.
Flexible fiber implants treat your brain without hurting it
Brain implants are limited right now -- they typically measure just one thing at a time, and their stiff wiring can wreck tissue if the device stays in place for long enough. Neither of those problems will matter if MIT's flexible fiber implant becomes a practical reality, though. The school's researchers have developed very thin (almost nanoscale), flexible polymer fibers that have customizable channels for carrying chemicals, electricity and light. These strands could not only treat a patient with drugs and light stimulation, but measure the response with electrodes; you'd know whether or not your medicine is working. The bendy, unintrusive design should also be safe for your body, making it possible to tackle long-term illnesses.
Flexible spinal cord implants will let paralyzed people walk
Doctors dream of helping the paralzyed walk through implants that stimulate their spinal cords, but current technology makes that impossible; these stiff, unnatural gadgets usually end up damaging or inflaming nervous tissue over time. Swiss researchers may have just solved this problem once and for all, though. Their bendy e-Dura implant combines flexible electrodes (made of platinum and silicon microbeads), cracked gold electronic tracks and fluidic microchannels to deliver both electrical impulses and chemicals while mimicking the spine's movements and avoiding friction. Paralyzed rats in lab tests could both walk again after a few weeks and keep wearing their implants after two months.
Boy gets the first 3D-printed vertebra implant
3D-printed implants just got one of their biggest real-world tests to date. Peking University Third Hospital has successfully implanted the first 3D-printed vertebra in a 12-year-old boy with cancer in his spinal cord. The bone substitute is made from titanium powder like many orthopedic implants, but promises to be both safer and longer-lasting than conventional replacements. Since it's designed to mimic the shape of the child's original vertebra, it doesn't need cement or screws to stay in place; healing should go faster, too. The construct is full of small holes that let natural bone grow inside, so it should eventually become a permanent, stable part of the spine that won't need adjustments at some point down the road.
Experimental stem cell treatment causes woman to grow parts of a nose on her spine
Stem cells are seen as one of modern medicine's most promising magic bullets, but that doesn't mean that we understand them. A paralyzed woman from the US has learned this the hard way, after an experimental treatment caused her to grow a nose-like tumor on her back. The unnamed person took part in a trial whereby stem cells from her nose were applied to her spine in the hope that it could repair the nerve damage that led to her paralysis. Unfortunately, the treatment was unsuccessful and, eight years later, the subject found worsening pain in that same area. When surgeons operated, they found a tumor comprised of nasal tissue that was producing a thick substance that was remarkably close to mucus.
Electronic neural bridge helps paralyzed mice walk again, human application might prove tricky
It's only been a week since we heard about age reversal in mice, yet already we've got another big advancement in rodent medical care: a solution for ameliorating the devastating effects of spinal cord injuries. A UCLA research team has shown off a new system that can restore walking motion to a mouse's hind legs, but not only that, it also grants control to the little fella by responding to its front legs' actions. Electromyography sensors detect when a mouse starts to walk up front, triggering electronic signals to be sent to the functional lower portion of its spine, which in turn starts up the rear muscles for a steady walking gait. It's only been tested on a treadmill so far, but the result seems to be a seamless restoration of walking capacity in rodents that doesn't require any outside assistance. The same will be pretty hard to replicate in humans, bipeds that they are, but that's why it's called research and not reobvious.
Active Book microchip provides hope for exercising paralyzed limbs
Scientists have been experimenting with muscles and technology to solve both human and robotic mobility issues for years. Now it looks as though a team of researchers from University College London, Freiburg University, and the Tyndall Institute in Cork have made a significant leap forward for paraplegics, thanks to a revolutionary microchip the team has dubbed "Active Book." What's notable about the chip is that it stimulates more muscle groups than existing technology without the need for external connections. This was accomplished via micro-packing and precision laser processing, which allowed tiny electrodes to be cut from platinum foil and rolled into a 3D book shape. These platinum foil "pages" close in around nerve roots, and are micro-welded to a hermetically sealed silicon chip. Once embedded into areas within the spinal canal, the chip can work to stimulate paralyzed muscles, implying patients could even "perform enough movement to carry out controlled exercise such as cycling or rowing." A press release from the Council which sponsored the research says the Active Book will begin trials sometime next year -- we can't wait to see the results.
SpineAssist robot tours spinal canal with camera in tow
While ridiculously small robots crawling around in our bodies seems quite painful (and in some cases, it is), a team headed by Moshe Shoham of Haifa's Technion is developing a smoother riding robot to cruise the friendly passageways of the spinal canal. Dubbed the SpineAssist, this low-powered microbot is being crafted to "aid surgeons in performing delicate spinal procedures" by propelling itself through the water-like cerebral spinal fluid and channeling live video / snapshots back to the doctors in charge. Researchers have already engineered the propulsion system, and describe the device as a "free-swimming endoscope" with two actuators and swimming tails that will lug a camera into the fragile depths. Shoham estimates that a few more years of work will be needed to up its payload capacity and shrink it to an appropriate size, but at least someone's working on taking the back aches out of surgery, eh?[Thanks, William]
