It wouldn’t be wrong to say that our lives are pretty much all about finding a way through different situations. These situations tend to test different parts of our personality, and with every said test, they feed into our growth. Such an upwards-looking setup ensures we are always in a better position than the last time, therefore bolstering our chances of achieving greater things as we move forward. Now, if we are talking in a more practical sense, the world has enjoyed a gazillion benefits purely on the back of this system, but in a case where we have to pick the most important one so far, it will be technology without any question whatsoever. Technology stands responsible for the biggest transformation our world has ever seen. It’s not to say that the previous generations didn’t do enough to spell a significant change, but the scale on which technology has functioned since its introduction remains unmatched by a sizeable distance, and when you have a tool so powerful in your hands, the only right thing to do is maximizing its potential. This, of course, translated to scaling up different industries. One, however, that had the biggest leap out of all was our medical sector. With outdated methodologies finally out of the door, medical sector was able to use technology for reinventing its identity, eventually birthing a concept called medtech. The medtech’s story has been a fascinating one. It hasn’t just enabled us to treat some complicated diseases, but it has done so while keeping convenience at the heart of everything. Even though the concept has already done a ton to help us out, it’s still progressing further quite relentlessly, and its latest milestone has been recently delivered by the Washington University School of Medicine.
The researching team at Washington University School of Medicine has developed an ultrashort-pulse laser, which is specifically designed for killing multidrug-resistance bacteria and their spores. According to some reports, the approach is largely centered on decontaminating wounds and blood products by breaking protein structures within the bacterial cell and causing biochemical disruption to eventually neutralize the infected compartment. One thing worth noting here is that the entire process goes on without harming any human cells over the course of its duration, something which has been a sticking point within this context for a while now.
“Imagine if, prior to closing a surgical wound, we could scan a laser beam across the site and further reduce the chances of infection. I can see this technology being used soon to disinfect biological products in vitro, and even to treat bloodstream infections in the future by putting patients on dialysis and passing the blood through a laser treatment device,” said Shaw-Wei Tsen, one of the researchers leading the study.
As far as efficiency rates are concerned, all the tests conducted on multidrug-resistant bacteria so far, including MRSA and extended spectrum beta-lactamase producing E-Coli, come together to project an average success rate of 99.9%. If it can sustain the number, the technique could very well be an answer for a host of healthcare-related questions.
