Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
This source gives a timeline of great medical advancements in history and gives brief
descriptions on what they are for and who invented them. I used this source as a reference
of what different medical devices can be.
Is big Pharma evil? Debate.org. 10 Sept. 2013. 3 Nov. 2015. <http://www.debate.org/opinions/isbig-pharma-evil>.
This source gives information on what pharmaceutical companies do and how they
develop their products. I used this source to show that not all of the motives of these
companies are pure. I also used it to show that without these companies there would be a
lot more incurable diseases and illnesses.
Sher, Davide. You Hear Theyre Bioprinting an Ear Drum? 3D Printing. 16 Oct. 2015. 20 Oct.
2015. <http://3dprintingindustry.com/2015/10/16/bioprinting-timpanic-membrane-aheadbiofabrication-2015-conference/>.
David Sher writes about how to solve the problem of some people being deaf. He writes
about how in the medical field three dimensional printing is already being used for
cartilage such as an ear, however; he goes on to say that in order to take the next step we
must use three dimensional printing to print something called a tympanic membrane. The
tympanic membrane is what makes it possible for humans to take the vibrations we hear
and transform them into complex sounds, such as hearing someone talk.
Dr. Lorenzo Moroni said, That they are trying to print the scaffolds in a way and with
materials that will allow them to react with stem cells to help those cells to transform into
the necessary cells required of the otoplastic bone or for the tympanic membrane (Sher).
This will drastically help the development of proper three dimensional printed ears.
Sher, Davide. Regenovo Bioprints Liver Lobule as Step to Full Bioficial Liver. 3D Printing.
12 Oct. 2015. 20 Oct. 2015. <http://3dprintingindustry.com/2015/10/12/regenovobioprints-hexagonal-hepatic-lobule-lead-full-bioficial-liver/>.
In this article it talks about three dimensional printing entire organs. In the article it talks
about how doing this is a very complex ordeal because an organ is not just some simple
thing with a shape and a function. In the article it talks about how the top two organs
scientists want to three dimensionally print are the kidneys and the liver. This is because
they are the two most commonly transplanted organs. The article references a Chinese
company called Regenovo that is working on the first steps to accomplishing this task.
According this Chinese company the best way to start is by breaking down the entirety of
the organ into basic parts. For a liver they start with structures called hepatic lobules
which are shaped like hexagons. In the article it tells us that the Chinese team has started
printing small sections of the lobules.
In the UK some cutting edge development with using three dimensional printing
is under way. This article talks about one of these cutting edge developments. This
development is surprisingly something called four dimensional printing. The UK
has discovered that you can use something called a dielectric elastomer actuator
or DEA for short. They use this to try and replicate muscles with a process they
call 4D printing.
These DEAs are essential for the process because they form a polymer that can
change its own shape with small electric signals.