Technology has come a long way in the past hundred or so years, as artificial intelligence, computers, and advanced imaging have brought new ways of thinking to the medical world. Today this innovation and invention seems so commonplace that we may not realize the impact it has had on the world of medicine and humanity.
The COVID-19 pandemic also forced pharma and healthcare to grow by leaps and bounds to care for affected patients around the world. Vaccines and treatments were invented and improved faster than ever before in the race to combat the virus, showing us how important it is to keep inventing.
Of course, significant technologies require medical patents, and inventors know that a medical patents attorney can protect their intellectual property.
Here are some of the most current medical innovations that will continue to change the world.
Tricorders
A group of doctors and engineers developed a device inspired by science fiction. They could be considered the medical technology version of the flying car. Today this technology has leapt from screens into the hands of a patient.
Basil Leaf Technologies launched a tricorder known as Tricorders
An artificial intelligence-based engine that helps diagnose medical conditions. This device can be used in a home without medical sour vision, allowing patients to diagnose medical conditions by themselves. DxtER extracts patient data from various sources and runs it through algorithms that recognize 34 different health conditions including stroke, tuberculosis, pneumonia, and diabetes.
DxtEr’s main hardware consists of an ipad mini but it will be able to run on any smartphone or tablet. The artificial intelligence algorithms used by the device are based on the 12 years of clinical experience of Basil Harris, an emergency physician from Philadelphia and credited with the invention of this medical patent.
Telehealth
Physician visits were diminished due to the COVID-19 crisis. Prior to the pandemic, people preferred a face-to-face visit to treat a health problem. However, fear of contagion caused virtual meetings to become more common and efficient in society. Not only to attend work or school but also for medical care.
Research firm Fortune Business Insights projects that the global telehealth market will grow nearly tenfold from US $61.4 million in 2019 to US $560 billion in 2027.
In the coming years, healthcare organizations will focus on a more effective way to integrate traditional medical services with telehealth services.
Software for Early Detection of Neurodegenerative Diseases
The rise of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease has led to an appreciation of the benefits of artificial intelligence. Radiology is taking on significant importance in the area of neurology.
The probability of developing Alzheimer’s is 1% to 2%, however, this figure doubles every 5 years. One of the crucial actions in the treatment of this disease is early detection. Currently, there is software based on artificial intelligence that helps to detect early neurodegenerative diseases called Al-Rad Companion Brain MR1.
It is a brain volumetry software that provides automatic volumetric quantification of different brain segments. It is capable of separating them from each other: isolation of the brain segments, isolation of the brain segments, and isolation of the brain segments from each other.
This software provides automatic volumetric quantification of different brain segments. It is able to separate them from each other: it quantifies for gray and white matter volumes for the lobes and hippocampus of the brain, separating the measurements of the volumes for analysis. The calculations provided by the system can be of great help in the early detection of neurodegenerative diseases in order to treat them in the early stages.
Another field of application of Artificial Intelligence is the research of new drugs and treatments for neurodegenerative diseases.
Intelligent Pacemakers
Nowadays we all know about the existence and use of pacemakers since their existence is more than 100 years old. Nowadays it is a current device and millions of patients make use of it to prevent or correct potentially dangerous cardiac arrhythmias.
Advances in technology have allowed pacemakers to be updated and taken to a new level. Pacemakers have been enabled with Bluetooth technology in order to link them to mobile devices through applications. This makes them easier to use and understand, eliminating the complex interfaces of conventional pacemakers.
In turn, a smart pacemaker allows remote and more effective monitoring of patient outcomes. Medtronic, a medical technology company, has now launched its next-generation patient monitoring system for pacemakers. It is a device that connects a handheld reader to a cell phone or tablet via a free app.
3D printing
The most notable advances in 3D printing have undoubtedly been in the production of external prostheses, cranial or orthopedic implants, and customized airway stents.
The technology has allowed medical devices to be perfectly adapted to each patient’s health specifications and natural anatomy. This makes it easier for a patient’s body to accept implants or prostheses if they are fully customized and tailored to their needs.
It has also been seen that 3D printing has helped to better plan complex surgical procedures. Discussions are currently underway regarding the printing of human tissue that could leave organ transplants behind.
Medical Patents
So what would happen if the most important medical technologies weren’t patented? We might see copying, imitation, and outright theft. Sometimes, if an idea is too broad, it can’t be patented. But for those inventions that require specific technologies, a medical patents attorney can protect their client’s work.
Some of the greatest inventions in history have been medical patents that saved lives, prevented death and disease for future generations, and unlocked medical mysteries for doctors and healthcare practitioners. Considering the advancement of technology so far in this century, the future is looking exciting for medical patents.
