Technology And Prosthetics

Technology is the accumulation of methods and techniques used in the construction of goods or the accomplishment of a goal. Solving a scientific investigation would be considered a goal that can use these types of processes. The information on methods or the knowledge embedded in a computer or a machine can both be considered technology. These devices can be operated by people that do not have previous knowledge of the information that is being searched. The initial development of technological devices dates all the way back to 1440 when Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press. Other inventions, such as the telephone and the Internet, have lowered the physical and social barriers of the interaction of humans, and allowed them to communicate …show more content…
In particular, the field of prosthetics has been greatly influenced by the increase of discoveries of new technology. In medicine, a prosthesis is a device that supplements for a defective or missing part of an individual’s body by being implanted or externally connected. Each patient has functional needs that determine how their prosthesis should be designed and assembled. Different types of these substitutions include limb, neck, and dental prostheses. Over the years, doctors and therapists have created new versions and designs of these prosthetics using technology, such as computers. In particular, limb prostheses can simplify and completely turn around an individual’s life who had implications causing difficulty on their daily activities, such as walking or writing. Limb prostheses consist of both upper and lower attachments. Upper extremity prostheses are used in a mixture of levels of amputation, such as an elbow, shoulder, wrist, hand, or finger. Lower extremity prostheses are also used in a multitude of different levels of amputation, such as a hip, knee, foot, or toe. These prosthetic devices are divided into two main subcategories which are titled trans-tibia and trans-femoral. Any amputation that transects the femur bone or birth defect that causes femoral deficiency is in need of a trans-femoral prosthesis, which is an artificial limb …show more content…
New materials and plastics have allowed prostheses to become more durable, lighter and stronger, so that the amount of energy needed to operate the artificial limb is limited. These materials have also created a more realistic look for the prostheses. As a result, the patients feel more comfortable in their own skin, and do not feel the need to hide their artificial limb. In addition to the variety of new materials, technology and electronics have become very useful in improving the construction of prosthetics. Computers do not only help with the manufacture and design of these new devices, but they also assist in revolutionizing all manner of prostheses also. Surprisingly, doctors are searching for a design of the artificial eye that will replace an impaired retina and allow numerous blind individuals to see primary movements and shapes. Cochlear prostheses stimulate the auditory nerve with electricity and enable particular deaf people to hear. Unlike hearing aids, these artificial devices to not make sounds louder. Alternatively, a nerve impulse that provokes the hearing part of the brain is created when an electrode in the inside of ones ear bypasses the injured part of the ear.
Our future is in store for much improvement in technology and prosthetics. When prosthetics are brought up in conversation, the typical situations that are thought of are those of our injured soldiers who have lost