A new ultrasound device, used in conjunction with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), allows neurosurgeons to precisely burn out small pieces of malfunctioning brain tissue without cutting the skin or opening the skull. A preliminary study from Switzerland involving nine patients with chronic pain shows that the technology can be used safely in humans. The researchers now aim to test it in patients with other disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease.

Seriously, they now have a system to do some brain surgery without opening a skull. That’s hot. That’s super-hot. They’re already removing small tumors and what not, now it’s precise enough to work on the brain without damage to surrounding tissues. I don’t think this will invalidate the single-hole docbot I wrote about earlier in the day, at least not any time soon, but this is still an exciting development. And no matter what, the docbot working on a skull still requires holes in the head, always a dicey prospect.

This is Star Trek style medicine.

Tags: hackers = tinkers, high tech, wow, yes please i'd like it now

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 28th, 2009 at 18:44.