ER's Dr. Mark Greene and his real-life colleagues may be better able to provide medical care in the field or in emergency and operating rooms of tomorrow. That's thanks to medical-device innovations like those described on the following pages.
The result of these innovations and others reported in this special Medical Issue of Design News mean better health care for all.
Robots, remotely operated from miles away, will perform critical surgery with seven degrees of freedom.
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Military hospitals will come in a box, to be set up by medics in minutes so they can provide complete care near the battle site.
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Materials will perform miracles on their own. Bandages will clot blood instantly. Garments will move interstitial fluids to promote blood circulation. And military "dog tags" will incorporate memory chips that contain a patient's entire medical history.
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And new surgical gloves will prevent HIV and other infections from needle sticks. They will withstand 2 lb of force from a hypodermic needle.