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scars

Biosynthetic corneas help restore light--and sight

In development for more than a decade, biosynthetic corneas implanted in 10 Swedish patients over a two-year clinical trial are helping most of those patients see again, according to researchers in Canada and Sweden.

"This study is important because it is the first to show that an artificially fabricated cornea can integrate with the human eye and stimulate regeneration," senior author May Griffith of the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute said. "With further research, this approach could help restore sight to millions of people who are waiting for a donated human cornea for transplantation."

Griffith and colleagues … Read more

Robot cuts the neck scar out of thyroid surgery

Guided by surgeons at a console, the da Vinci Surgical System enables access to the thyroid through the armpit, thereby doing away with the neck incision that has led to the hallmark scar of thyroid surgery, a team of surgeons in Georgia and Texas says.

The group adds that the robots first helped revolutionize urologic and gynecologic surgery in recent years, and that the thyroid gland--roughly the size of a kiwi that sits beneath the Adam's apple--can be accessed without too much trouble through the armpit.

The thyroid controls the body's metabolic rate, and diseases both benign … Read more

Modular Special Forces weapon one step closer to deployment

The new Special Forces combat assault rifle (SCAR) meant to replace a hodgepodge of weapons currently used by U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) is undergoing its field assessment phase, the last step before full-production and battlefield deployment.

Available as the MK-16 or MK-17, (accepting 5.65 and 7.62 NATO ammunition respectively) the SCAR is a highly modular system designed to adapt easily to future upgrades and new ammunition. The weapon, produced by the Belgian company Fabrique Nationale Herstal (FN), with replace the Colt M4, long a source of bitter gripes throughout the SF community due to its lack … Read more