Technology and medicine- future directions?

I couldn't pass up an opportunity to comment on a recent article in the latest issues of the Economist.  Basically there is a 3-D bio printer machine on the horizon that can be programmed to create cell lines and eventually whole organs.  Researchers are starting simply with skin, muscle and blood vasculature but hope to progress to larger patches of cells that are grown on artificial scaffolds in the shape of particular organs.  Researchers have created ex vivo bladders this way but not using a machine approach. My feeling is that a bladder is one thing, but a functioning organ such as a kidney will be a great deal more complex. Human biology being what it is, I think it unlikely that a machine primed with recipes for 'baking body parts' will become a reality any time soon, if ever.  I do applaud the effort however.  There is certainly no progress in any field without imagination.

It's obvious that our current healthcare system is unsustainable and this piece from the New York Times sums it up nicely. In addition to speculating on the future collapse of the system he talks about his son's recent wrestling injury which I must admit distracted me from the meat of the message, having a young wrestler myself (see pic).  Regardless, if you are thinking healthcare reform is unnecessary, you should take a look at what he has to say.  We spend the most but are way down the list when it comes to outcomes such as life expectancy and infant mortality.  For those worried about tax increases to pay for universal access, would you rather pay a few hundred more each month for health insurance with higher deductibles and more procedures not covered, or a bit more tax for higher coverage for all.  The the country as a whole, the latter makes so much more sense.

I don't hear much about this yet but it's eye opening how much 'high-tech' doctors are earning these days.  Even taking into consideration their malpractice insurance, these salaries are likely to come under scrutiny as health reform progresses (yes, it is progressing, albeit very slowly).   When physicians earn up to half a million per year and patients are going bankrupt to afford the services, something is out of balance.  Even for those who are adequately insured (a rapidly decreasing segment of the US population), increases in insurance premiums and decreases in covered services will bring the actual costs of medicine and everything it encompasses further under the microscope.  It's hard to figure how this will re-balance, given the costs of med school and malpractice, but re-balance it must.

This posts brings up a related question: High tech means high cost; how much technology in medicine is too much? And who makes that determination?  Ultimately, it must be you and I, the consumer.  Are we prepared?

Olympic fever

No, not a new disease. But it might as well be. It is just as debilitating to be glued to the TV at every opportunity as being bed-bound with a sickness, but a lot more fun. I watched the opening ceremony last night and was truly amazing at the seemless integration of human innovation and technological mastery. The coordination of the performers was unbelievable, especially the multiple groups of 2008 artists who drummed, danced, and tai-chi-ed like syncytia across the floors, the props and through the air.
As the history of China unfolded in the performances I was reminded of the wisdom of the East. At a conference in Singapore a few years ago, a speaker asked the audience a question: Which of the following are the odd ones out: cow, grass chicken? The audience was divided, along geographical lines it seemed. The Westerner agreed the grass is odd man because it is not an animal. The Eastern folks were certain it was the chicken because the cow eat the grass, leaving the chicken out in the cold. Who was right? Well, both. If you think in categories as we tend to in the West, then the grass is odd. For Easterners who believe everything is connected, then the chicken loses. The fundamental disconnect between two diametrically opposed ways of thinking in this simple but profound example lies at the heart of current contentions around communications, medicine, science and computing. It is becoming more clear that the East is right--everything is connected, so what do we do about our heavy reliance on taxonomic thinking and uber-reductionism in the West? This is the big problem of our age and it is up to those who can see both sides to bridge the divide.
Like the Beijing opening ceremony, there will have to be choices such as not using technology just because we can (there were several elements of the performances that could have been easily driven by technology but where people were used instead). A hi-tech show would have been more flawless, but the real awe for me, was inspired by the trade off of precision for heart. Knowing the practice, the team work and the pride that went must have gone into those performances made them special in a way pure technology could not.