Surgery

It’s hard to get medical adhesives to stick when blood is making everything wet. Now, MIT researchers have developed a new surgical glue that can halt bleeding within 30 seconds, inspired by the super-strong underwater adhesive used by barnacles.

During surgery or traumatic injury, quickly stopping bleeding saves lives. Now, scientists have recruited an unlikely ally to that cause – snake venom, which forms the basis of a new “super glue” that halts bleeding in seconds after light activation.

Everyone responds to general anesthetics differently, which can make administering the correct dose tricky. A new device is designed to help, by continuously monitoring anesthetic levels in patients' bloodstreams during surgical procedures.

Panasonic has developed a new Medical Imaging Projection System that not only tracks changes in the shape and positions of organs in near real-time, but projects the images directly onto the patient as a guide for surgeons during complex operations.

Although many surgical procedures can now be performed laparoscopically (through a small incision in the skin), it's still difficult to seal up internal injuries in this manner. MIT is developing a way of doing so, though, that's inspired by origami.

To overcome the stereotypical emotionless "Botox face," physicians have been working on novel ways to administer the paralytic toxin that generate a more natural outcome. A new study reveals a novel Botox microdose therapy is both safe and effective

The long-term results of a massive international trial, spanning almost two decades, has shown a single session of a novel form of radiotherapy is as effective in treating most breast cancers as a conventional radiotherapy plan lasting several weeks.

Ripping Band-Aids off your skin is never fun – but imagine having one on your heart or lung. Researchers have now created surgical tape that can stick to wet surfaces like organs, and more importantly, be removed safely when it’s no longer needed.

Telerobotic systems already allow surgeons in one location to control robotic surgical tools in another, so they can perform operations at a distance. A new proximity-sensing system, however, could make such procedures safer and more precise.

A delicate procedure called supermicrosurgery requires a high-level of expertise by surgeons, but they may soon have a new robotic tool at their disposal called Musa, which has performed its first round of procedures with great success.

Some studies suggest anti-inflammatory drugs can slow wound healing and bone repair. New research reveals our natural circadian clocks play a major role in healing, and anti-inflammatory drugs may be more effective if taken in the morning.

In search of advanced medical devices that can be ingested by the human body and don’t need to be surgically removed after, scientists at MIT have developed a new technology that would instead break them down by exposure to certain kinds of light.