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At a stretch It’s not hard to see why a respiratory pandemic might put stress on the world’s supply of vaccines, PPE and ventilators – but why are toys getting more expensive, and why can’t anyone...
New standards Standard 3D printers can’t extrude the tissue-mimicking materials needed to make lifelike models of human organs. But who said 3D printing had to be standard? Tim Gunn speaks to...
Out of joint Hip and knee replacements are two of the most common operations carried out in orthopaedic departments, but that doesn’t mean they’ve been perfected. There’s constant development into...
Sustainable spinning As well as they work in the body, advanced biomaterials aren’t necessarily good for the planet. Despite the name, many are synthetic and require huge amounts of energy, or...
Making the perfect mask In 2020, when SARS-CoV-2 was spreading like wildfire across the globe, an immediate problem for front-line healthcare workers was that the supply of PPE couldn’t meet the sudden surge...
Cheap as chips Lab-on-a-chip (LOC) technology was supposed to bring point-of-care diagnostics to the developing world, but producing such precise and delicate devices is costly. 3D printing was...
A new era Designing an implant for the human body is a complex balancing act between biocompatibility, mechanical function and medical outcome. Whether titanium or silicone, a device put to work...
Chip in It’s best not to advertise this to vaccine refusers, but microchips are being injected into people – in clinical trials, at least. They’ve been touted for their ability to...
Coming of age Microfluidics has been around for decades, but despite numerous impressive applications, there are still barriers that make it difficult to translate novel devices created in...
A light in the dark The world has been testing for Covid-19 for so long now that the technology at work to produce results might feel rudimentary. The reality is that the ability to diagnose the disease...
Deliver the goods Pharmaceuticals have come a long way throughout history. These days, therapeutic agents can even be delivered at a controlled dosage after being embedded within implants. Abi...
The limits of automation Automation has undergone technological updates over the years, leading to more flexibility in what manufacturers can build. But have the economics behind setting up an automated...
Cut the red tape For more than a decade, most medical devices have been made with the help of contract manufacturers, commissioned by third parties to design and build specific bits of kit. But over...
Designing with metal in mind Medical device manufacturers are constantly looking for ways to gain an edge in a competitive global marketplace. But the pressure to drive innovation often results in a narrow focus...
Lessons learned Emergency Use Authorisations (EUAs) have seemingly been given left, right and centre by the FDA during the Covid-19 pandemic. The regulator has been praised for how quickly it moved...
IVDR: from directive to regulation The EU medical device and in vitro diagnostics regulations improvement campaign has been a subject of discussion for many years, ever since the resulting legislation was published in...
Spin doctor When spider webs get inside, our first impulse is to clean them away. But the sticky filigree isn’t dirty in itself. In fact, the material we try to keep out of our houses might be...
Make it wearable Whether the technology monitors, manages or stimulates, someone’s probably trying to make it into a wearable – and the market is booming in line with the rise in telemedicine. Abi...
The inside story Neuromonitoring and neuromodulation technologies combine practical tools for patient care with what often seem like plot points from science fiction, and are on their way to erasing...
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