Which old technology breakthroughs are changing the modern medical field with different uses?

There is no denying that technology is advancing at an alarming rate. It has gotten to the stage where we can control our homes by our phones, that we can instantly call people via video and have robots clean our homes. However, there have been huge advancements in the medical field, and the technology breakthroughs being made are indeed saving lives, often in ways you didn’t expect.

Ultrasounds for earlier diagnosis

The ultrasound machine has been a firm placement of technology inside the hospital and medical environments since 1956 when they were first used. The technology is not new, as the idea for such technology has existed since 1794. Today, an ultrasound machine can detect pregnancies earlier and any potential health problems with the baby in the development stages. It has been utilized to detect heart murmurs and abnormal heartbeats, which has led to life-saving treatment such as open heart surgery. 

While it is not a new technology, it has come a long way. It has become an extremely vital piece of equipment in the medical world.

Life-saving DNA modifications

Advancements in genetics and DNA modifications has helped in terms of skin disease. Faulty genes and DNA can be modified in a lab when a patient needs skin grafts to apply healthy skin to damaged tissue at a later stage and help cure the disease. While most of these advancements are still a work in progress, there is no doubt that innovations surrounding DNA and modified genetics can ensure that the sky is the limit in fixing and potentially avoiding issues for years to come.

Virtual reality: a surgery innovation

While virtual reality has become huge in gaming and technology, it is even being modified and advanced in some ways to assist surgeons to perform more complex surgeries. Utilizing a VR headset generates a 3-D image of what surgery they are performing and with practice, assists in achieving a high success rate to perform successful surgeries in the hospital. This modern technology could help surgeons perform surgeries that have been considered as impossible in the past and with continued innovation, can save many more lives.

Artificial intelligence combined with The Internet of Things

Artificial intelligence has made some major strides in the home, but it may evolve to such a stage where robots, operating on AI technologies combined with The Internet of Things, will be on hand to assist inside medical environments. They may already be used as additional hands during surgeries. They can help care for patients who are in need of constant monitoring and can help ensure a safer environment inside the hospital in order to run more efficiently, placing medical staff where they are desperately needed and help see and help more people in the future.