If you get a small cut, you might throw a plastic bandage on it to help it heal faster. However, there are fancier options on the horizon, like this advanced AI-powered smart bandage.
Researchers at UC Santa Cruz have developed a proof-of-concept device called a-Heal, intended for use inside existing commercial bandages for colostomy use. The device is fitted with a small camera, which images the wound site every two hours. The images are then uploaded via a wireless connection, and processed with a machine learning model that has been trained to make suggestions on how to better stimulate the healing process based on the image input. The device can then follow these recommendations, either using electrical stimulation to reduce inflammation in the wound, or supplying fluoxetine to stimulate the growth of healthy tissue. In testing, the device was able to improve the rate of skin coverage over an existing wound compared to a control.
The long-term goal is to apply the technology in a broader sense to help better treat things like chronic or infected wounds that may have difficulty healing. It’s still at an early stage for now, but it could one day be routine for medical treatment to involve the use of small smart devices to gain a better rolling insight on the treatment of wounds. It’s not the first time we’ve explored innovative methods of wound care; we’ve previously looked at how treatments from the past could better inform how we treat in future.
Maybe for the rich people who rarely get any cut.
Or people who receive assistance with wound care. This could be cheaper than direct human monitoring while also reducing the risk of cellulitis and sepsis.
Of course, that’s harder to feel smug over.
Rich people get cut all the time. They get paper cut counting their stack of $100 bills. ;)
If you’re counting your money yourself are you really rich?
The truly wealthy have orphans to count their money for them;)
“Google recommends you purchase this to heal your wound and this painkiller from here“?
Sounds out of Cyberpunk 2077.
This is certainly a better use of AI compared to forcing it into any aspect of our life that doesn’t need it.
More mature too. Image analysis was one of the first uses.
“Keep the wound clean and consult a licensed physician”
Thank you ChatGPT
Novel use of fluoxetine (Prozac) for wound care leads me to think that this report might not be entirely on the up and up.
No kidding, I had to assume that was an error, but maybe it’s just AI slop. As someone who’s had a terrifyingly bad reaction to fluoxetine it caught my eye.
Fluoxetine prompted me to look at Wikipedia, no mention of magical healing. I then asked Duck Duck Go: fluoxetine and wound healing.
Result was a blank page!!! Absolutely nothing except the question.
Did I break the Duck 🦆???
Now wait for someone to come up with a subscription model…
“Your wound would heal better if you switch to a premium membership. That activates the electrical stimulation…”
Oh, and to sell your personal (medical) information to the highest bidder at the same time.
The Internet of Band-Aids. And of course lots of people will be left with expensive, useless bandages when their bandage company goes broke, or a competitor buys their bandage provider and shuts down the service.