Today in Technology History
(To receive "Today in Technology History" by e-mail, click here. To read past issues click here.)
October 29
Medicine and electricity have a long history together, dating back to an eighteenth-century Italian anatomist (Luigi Galvani, from whose name we get the word "galvanize") who discovered that electrical impulses make the legs of dead frogs twitch. His experiments were the direct inspiration for the story of Frankenstein's monster, brought to life with electricity.
In the nonfiction world of medicine, scientists eventually came to realize that our bodies are electro-chemical wonders. Our brain cells emit rapid flashes of electricity, our nervous systems transmit electrical impulses, and our muscles are controlled by electrical charges. That's why many of the devices of modern medicine involve electricity -- most notably, pacemakers for regulating heart rhythm, and electrical paddles (defibrillators) for jolting the heart back into regular action.
There is a great deal that scientists still don't know about the medical uses of electricity. This is a fact often exploited by charlatans who sell electrical and magnetic devices supposedly capable of miraculous cures. Also, fringe treatments and alternative medicines that incorporate electricity -- such as "electro-acupuncture" -- are increasingly popular.
Strangely, electricity seems to have a legitimate medical value in treating certain bone fractures. Thirty years ago, on October 29, 1971, two scientists from the University of Pennsylvania reported that they had successfully healed a patient's fractured bone by using nine weeks of electrical stimulation. Subsequent studies confirm that electricity seems to encourage bone growth, even having a beneficial effect on old unhealed fractures. Electrical therapy may be used someday to supplement or even replace more mainstream bone graft procedures.
Related links:
Click here and here for the homepages of the two chief investigators 30 years ago who worked on the healing effect of electricity on bones.
Click here for information related to bone health.
Click here to read about electricity in "alternative medicine."
| Biotechnology | Convergence | Creativity | Culture | E-conomics | Education |
| Equity | Gov't & Politics | Innovation | National Security | Personal Security |
For errors, broken links, questions or comments,
contact webmaster@tecsoc.org.
