Great discoveries in medicine were made by accident. The latest advances in medicine

Medical physics Podkolzina Vera Aleksandrovna

1. Medical physics. Short story

Medical physics is the science of a system that consists of physical devices and radiation, medical and diagnostic devices and technologies.

The goal of medical physics is the study of these systems for the prevention and diagnosis of diseases, as well as the treatment of patients using methods and means of physics, mathematics and technology. The nature of diseases and the mechanism of recovery in many cases have a biophysical explanation.

Medical physicists are directly involved in the diagnostic and treatment process, combining physical and medical knowledge, sharing responsibility for the patient with the doctor.

The development of medicine and physics have always been closely intertwined. Even in ancient times, medicine used medicinal purposes physical factors such as heat, cold, sound, light, various mechanical influences (Hippocrates, Avicenna, etc.).

The first medical physicist was Leonardo da Vinci (five centuries ago), who conducted research on the mechanics of locomotion human body. Medicine and physics began to interact most fruitfully with late XVIII- the beginning of the 19th century, when electricity and electromagnetic waves were discovered, i.e. with the advent of the era of electricity.

Let's name a few names of great scientists who made important discoveries in different eras.

Late XIX – mid-XX centuries. associated with the discovery of X-rays, radioactivity, theories of atomic structure, and electromagnetic radiation. These discoveries are associated with the names of V. K. Roentgen, A. Becquerel,

M. Skladovskaya-Curie, D. Thomson, M. Planck, N. Bohr, A. Einstein, E. Rutherford. Medical physics truly began to establish itself as an independent science and profession only in the second half of the twentieth century. - with the advent of the atomic era. In medicine, radiodiagnostic gamma devices, electron and proton accelerators, radiodiagnostic gamma cameras, X-ray computed tomographs and others, hyperthermia and magnetic therapy, laser, ultrasound and other medical and physical technologies and devices have become widely used. Medical physics has many sections and names: medical radiation physics, clinical physics, oncological physics, therapeutic and diagnostic physics.

The most important development in the field of medical examination can be considered the creation of computer tomographs, which expanded the study of almost all organs and systems of the human body. OCT has been installed in clinics around the world, and a large number of physicists, engineers and doctors worked in the field of improving technology and methods of bringing it almost to the limits of the possible. The development of radionuclide diagnostics is a combination of radiopharmaceutical methods and physical methods for recording ionizing radiation. Positron emission tomography imaging was invented in 1951 and published in the work of L. Renn.

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5. A Brief History of A Brief History6 I am still stunned by the reception my book A Brief History of Time has received. It remained on the New York Times bestseller list for thirty-seven weeks and on the Sunday Times bestseller list for twenty-seven weeks.

From the book Medical Physics author Podkolzina Vera Alexandrovna

3. Medical metrology and its specifics Technical devices used in medicine are called the general term “medical equipment”. Most medical equipment belongs to medical equipment, which in turn is divided into medical

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11. Earth: history of the interior During the formation of the Earth, gravity sorted the primary material according to its density: the denser components sank to the center, and the less dense ones floated on top, eventually forming the crust. In Fig. I.8 shows the Earth in section. Crust

From the book The World in a Nutshell [ill. book-magazine] author Hawking Stephen William

HISTORY AND ORGANIZATION 12.2. The reorganization project that took place early in 1942 and the subsequent gradual transfer of the OSRD's business to the Manhattan District were described in Chapter V. It will be recalled that the study of physics atomic bomb was first part of the duties

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Modern physics and fundamental physics First of all, let us find out the essence of the new physics, which distinguished it from the previous physics. After all, Galileo’s experiments and mathematics did not go beyond the capabilities of Archimedes, whom Galileo did not call “the most divine” for nothing. What did Galileo wear?

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History of science Arnold V.I. Huygens and Barrow, Newton and Hooke. M.: Nauka, 1989. Bely Yu.A. Johannes Kepler. 1571–1630. M.: Nauka, 1971. Vavilov S.I. Diaries. 1909–1951: In 2 books. M.: Nauka, 2012.Vernadsky V.I. Diaries. M.: Nauka, 1999, 2001, 2006, 2008; M.: ROSSPEN, 2010. Vizgin V.P. Unified field theories in the first third of the twentieth century

From the author's book

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A Brief History of Quantum Physics 1858 April 23. Max Planck was born in Kiel (Germany). 1871 August 30th. Ernest Rutherford was born in Brightwater (New Zealand). March 14, 1879. Albert Einstein was born in Ulm (Germany) on December 11, 1882. Max Born was born in Breslau (Germany) 1885 October 7th. IN

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6. Family History Once the main decision was made, everything else gradually fell into place, if not automatically, then with some effort on our part. The next year flew by in a rush of euphoria. Any doubts about your health status

Incredible facts

Human health directly concerns each of us.

Facilities mass media are replete with stories about our health and body, starting with the creation of new medicines and ending with the discoveries of unique surgical methods that give hope to disabled people.

Below we will talk about the latest achievements modern medicine.

Latest advances in medicine

10. Scientists have identified new part body

Back in 1879, a French surgeon named Paul Segond described in one of his studies the “pearly, resistant fibrous tissue” running along the ligaments in the human knee.


This study was conveniently forgotten until 2013, when scientists discovered the anterolateral ligament, knee ligament, which is often damaged when injuries and other problems occur.

Considering how often a person's knee is scanned, the discovery came very late. It is described in the journal Anatomy and published online in August 2013.


9. Brain-computer interface


Scientists working at Korea University and the German University of Technology have developed a new interface that allows the user control the exoskeleton of the lower extremities.

It works by decoding specific brain signals. The results of the study were published in August 2015 in the journal Neural Engineering.

Participants in the experiment wore an electroencephalogram headgear and controlled the exoskeleton by simply looking at one of five LEDs mounted on the interface. This caused the exoskeleton to move forward, turn right or left, and sit or stand.


So far the system has only been tested on healthy volunteers, but it is hoped that it could eventually be used to help people with disabilities.

Study co-author Klaus Muller explained that "people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or spinal cord injuries often have difficulty communicating and controlling their limbs; deciphering their brain signals by such a system offers a solution to both problems."

Achievements of science in medicine

8. A device that can move a paralyzed limb with the power of thought


In 2010, Ian Burkhart was left paralyzed when he broke his neck in a swimming pool accident. In 2013, thanks to the joint efforts of specialists from Ohio State University and Battelle, a man became the first person in the world who can now bypass his spinal cord and move a limb using only the power of thought.

The breakthrough came thanks to the use of a new type of electronic nerve bypass, a pea-sized device that implanted in the motor cortex of the human brain.

The chip interprets brain signals and transmits them to the computer. The computer reads the signals and sends them to a special sleeve worn by the patient. Thus, the necessary muscles are brought into action.

The whole process takes a split second. However, to achieve such a result, the team had to work hard. The team of technologists first figured out the exact sequence of electrodes that allowed Burkhart to move his arm.

Then the man had to undergo several months of therapy to restore atrophied muscles. The end result is that he is now can rotate his hand, clench it into a fist, and also determine by touch what is in front of him.

7. A bacterium that feeds on nicotine and helps smokers quit the habit.


Quitting smoking is an extremely difficult task. Anyone who has tried to do this will confirm what was said. Almost 80 percent of those who tried to do this with the help of pharmaceutical drugs failed.

In 2015, scientists from the Scripps Research Institute are giving new hope to those who want to quit. They were able to identify a bacterial enzyme that eats nicotine before it can reach the brain.

The enzyme belongs to the bacterium Pseudomonas putida. This enzyme is not the newest discovery However, it has only recently been developed in laboratory conditions.

Researchers plan to use this enzyme to create new methods of quitting smoking. By blocking nicotine before it reaches the brain and triggers dopamine production, they hope they can discourage smokers from putting their mouths on a cigarette.


To be effective, any therapy must be sufficiently stable, without causing additional problems during activity. Currently a laboratory-produced enzyme behaves stably for more than three weeks while in a buffer solution.

Tests involving laboratory mice showed no side effects. The scientists published the results of their research in the online version of the August issue of the journal American Chemical Society.

6. Universal flu vaccine


Peptides are short chains of amino acids that exist in the cellular structure. They act as the main building block for proteins. In 2012, scientists working at the University of Southampton, the University of Oxford and the Retroskin Virology Laboratory, managed to identify new set peptides found in the influenza virus.

This could lead to the creation of a universal vaccine against all strains of the virus. The results were published in the journal Nature Medicine.

In the case of influenza, the peptides on the outer surface of the virus mutate very quickly, making them almost inaccessible to vaccines and drugs. The newly discovered peptides live in the internal structure of the cell and mutate quite slowly.


Moreover, these internal structures can be found in every strain of influenza, from classical to avian. The current flu vaccine takes about six months to develop, but does not provide long-term immunity.

However, it is possible, by focusing efforts on the work of internal peptides, to create a universal vaccine that will give long-term protection.

Flu is viral disease upper respiratory tract, which affects the nose, throat and lungs. It can be deadly, especially if a child or elderly person becomes infected.


Influenza strains have been responsible for several pandemics throughout history, the worst of which was the 1918 pandemic. No one knows for sure how many people have died from the disease, but some estimates suggest 30-50 million people worldwide.

The latest medical advances

5. Possible treatment Parkinson's disease


In 2014, scientists took artificial but fully functioning human neurons and successfully grafted them into the brains of mice. Neurons have the potential to treating and even curing diseases such as Parkinson's disease.

The neurons were created by a team of specialists from the Max Planck Institute, the University Hospital Münster and the University of Bielefeld. Scientists managed to create stable nervous tissue from neurons reprogrammed from skin cells.


In other words, they induced neural stem cells. This is a method that increases the compatibility of new neurons. After six months, the mice did not develop any side effects, and the implanted neurons integrated perfectly with their brains.

The rodents showed normal brain activity, resulting in the formation of new synapses.


The new technique has the potential to give neuroscientists the ability to replace diseased, damaged neurons with healthy cells that could one day fight Parkinson's disease. Because of it, the neurons that supply dopamine die.

There is currently no cure for this disease, but the symptoms are treatable. The disease usually develops in people aged 50-60 years. At the same time, the muscles become stiff, changes occur in speech, gait changes and tremors appear.

4. The world's first bionic eye


Retinitis pigmentosa is the most common hereditary eye disease. It leads to partial loss of vision, and often to complete blindness. Early symptoms include loss of night vision and difficulty with peripheral vision.

In 2013, the Argus II retinal prosthetic system was created, the world's first bionic eye designed to treat advanced retinitis pigmentosa.

The Argus II system is a pair of external glasses equipped with a camera. The images are converted into electrical impulses that are transmitted to electrodes implanted in the patient's retina.

These images are perceived by the brain as light patterns. The person learns to interpret these patterns, gradually restoring visual perception.

Currently, the Argus II system is only available in the United States and Canada, but there are plans to implement it worldwide.

New advances in medicine

3. Painkiller that works only due to light


Severe pain is traditionally treated with opioid medications. The main disadvantage is that many of these drugs can be addictive, so their potential for abuse is enormous.

What if scientists could stop pain using nothing but light?

In April 2015, neurologists at the Washington University medical school at the University of St. Louis announced that they managed to do this.


By combining a light-sensitive protein with opioid receptors in a test tube, they were able to activate opioid receptors the same way opiates do, but only with light.

It is hoped that experts can develop ways to use light to relieve pain while using drugs with fewer side effects. According to research by Edward R. Siuda, it is likely that with more experimentation, light could completely replace drugs.


To test the new receptor, an LED chip about the size of a human hair was implanted into the brain of a mouse, which was then linked to the receptor. Mice were placed in a chamber where their receptors were stimulated to produce dopamine.

If the mice left the special designated area, the lights were turned off and the stimulation stopped. The rodents quickly returned to their place.

2. Artificial ribosomes


A ribosome is a molecular machine made up of two subunits that use amino acids from cells to make proteins.

Each of the ribosomal subunits is synthesized in the cell nucleus and then exported to the cytoplasm.

In 2015, researchers Alexander Mankin and Michael Jewett were able to create the world's first artificial ribosome. Thanks to this, humanity has a chance to learn new details about the operation of this molecular machine.


The most important discoveries in the history of medicine

1. Human Anatomy (1538)

Andreas Vesalius analyzes human bodies from autopsies, lays out details of human anatomy and refutes different interpretations on this topic. Vesalius believes that understanding anatomy is critical to performing operations, so he analyzes human cadavers (unusual for the time).

Its anatomical diagrams of the circulatory and nervous systems, written as a standard to help his students, are copied so often that he is forced to publish them to protect their authenticity. In 1543, he published De Humani Corporis Fabrica, which marked the beginning of the birth of the science of anatomy.

2. Blood circulation (1628)

William Harvey discovers that blood circulates throughout the body and names the heart as the organ responsible for the circulation of blood. His pioneering work, an anatomical sketch of the heart and circulation of blood in animals, published in 1628, formed the basis for modern physiology.

3. Blood groups (1902)

Kapril Landsteiner

Austrian biologist Karl Landsteiner and his group discover four blood types in humans and develop a classification system. Knowledge various types blood is critical to performing safe blood transfusions, which is now common practice.

4. Anesthesia (1842-1846)

Some scientists have found that certain chemical substances can be used as anesthesia, which allows operations to be performed without pain. The first experiments with anesthetics - nitrous oxide (laughing gas) and sulfuric ether - began to be used in the 19th century, mainly by dentists.

5. X-Rays (1895)

Wilhelm Roentgen accidentally discovers X-rays while conducting experiments with cathode ray emission (electron ejection). He notices that the rays are able to penetrate through the opaque black paper wrapped around the cathode ray tube. This causes the flowers located on the adjacent table to glow. His discovery revolutionized the fields of physics and medicine, earning him the first ever Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901.

6. Germ Theory (1800)

French chemist Louis Pasteur believes that some microbes are pathogenic agents. At the same time, the origin of diseases such as cholera, anthrax and rabies remains a mystery. Pasteur formulated the germ theory, suggesting that these diseases and many others were caused by corresponding bacteria. Pasteur is called the "father of bacteriology" because his work became the threshold of new scientific research.

7. Vitamins (early 1900s)

Frederick Hopkins and others discovered that some diseases caused by deficiency of certain nutrients, which later received the name vitamins. In experiments with nutrition on laboratory animals, Hopkins proves that these "nutritional accessory factors" have important for good health.

Education is one of the foundations of human development. Only thanks to the fact that humanity has passed on its empirical knowledge from generation to generation, at the moment we can enjoy the benefits of civilization, live in a certain abundance and without destructive racial and tribal wars for access to the resources of existence.
Education has also penetrated into the Internet. One of the educational projects was called Otrok.

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8. Penicillin (1920-1930s)

Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin. Howard Florey and Ernst Boris isolated it in its pure form, creating an antibiotic.

Fleming's discovery happened completely by accident, he noticed that mold had killed bacteria of a certain sample in a Petri dish that was just lying around in the laboratory sink. Fleming isolates a specimen and calls it Penicillium notatum. In subsequent experiments, Howard Florey and Ernst Boris confirmed penicillin treatment of mice with bacterial infections.

9. Sulfur-containing preparations (1930)

Gerhard Domagk discovers that Prontosil, an orange-red dye, is effective in treating infections caused by the bacteria common streptococcus. This discovery opens the way to the synthesis of chemotherapy drugs (or "wonder drugs") and the production of sulfonamide drugs in particular.

10. Vaccination (1796)

Edward Jenner, an English physician, conducts the first vaccination against smallpox, having determined that cowpox vaccination provides immunity. Jenner formulated his theory after noticing that patients who work with large cattle and came into contact with a cow without contracting smallpox during an epidemic in 1788.

11. Insulin (1920)

Frederick Banting and his colleagues discovered the hormone insulin, which helps balance blood sugar levels in patients diabetes mellitus and allows them to live a normal life. Before the discovery of insulin, it was impossible to save diabetic patients.

12. Discovery of oncogenes (1975)

13. Discovery of the human retrovirus HIV (1980)

Scientists Robert Gallo and Luc Montagnier separately discovered a new retrovirus, later named HIV (human immunodeficiency virus), and classified it as the causative agent of AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome).

Doctor biological sciences Y. PETRENKO.

Several years ago in Moscow state university The Faculty of Fundamental Medicine was opened, which trains doctors with extensive knowledge in natural disciplines: mathematics, physics, chemistry, molecular biology. But the question of how much fundamental knowledge a doctor needs continues to cause heated debate.

Science and life // Illustrations

Among the symbols of medicine depicted on the pediments of the library building of the Russian State Medical University are hope and healing.

A wall painting in the foyer of the Russian State Medical University, which depicts the great doctors of the past sitting in thought at one long table.

W. Gilbert (1544-1603), court physician to the Queen of England, naturalist who discovered earthly magnetism.

T. Young (1773-1829), famous English doctor and physicist, one of the creators of the wave theory of light.

J.-B. L. Foucault (1819-1868), French doctor, keen physical research. With the help of a 67-meter pendulum, he proved the rotation of the Earth around its axis and made many discoveries in the field of optics and magnetism.

J. R. Mayer (1814-1878), German physician who established the basic principles of the law of conservation of energy.

G. Helmholtz (1821-1894), a German doctor, studied physiological optics and acoustics, formulated the theory of free energy.

Should future doctors be taught physics? IN Lately This question worries many, and not only those who train medical professionals. As usual, two extreme opinions exist and clash. Those in favor paint a gloomy picture, which is the fruit of a neglectful attitude towards the basic disciplines in education. Those who are “against” believe that a humanitarian approach should dominate in medicine and that a doctor should first of all be a psychologist.

MEDICAL CRISIS AND SOCIETY CRISIS

Modern theoretical and practical medicine has achieved great success, and physical knowledge has greatly helped it. But in scientific articles and journalism, voices continue to be heard about the crisis of medicine in general and medical education in particular. There are definitely facts indicating a crisis - this is the emergence of “divine” healers and the revival of exotic healing methods. Spells like "abracadabra" and amulets like the frog's leg are back in use, just like in prehistoric times. Neovitalism is gaining popularity, one of the founders of which, Hans Driesch, believed that the essence of life phenomena is entelechy (a kind of soul), acting outside of time and space, and that living things cannot be reduced to a set of physical and chemical phenomena. Recognition of entelechy as a vital force denies the importance of physicochemical disciplines for medicine.

There are many examples of how pseudoscientific ideas replace and displace truly scientific knowledge. Why is this happening? According to Nobel laureate, the discoverer of the structure of DNA, Francis Crick, when a society becomes very rich, young people show reluctance to work: they prefer to live an easy life and do trifles like astrology. This is true not only for rich countries.

As for the crisis in medicine, it can only be overcome by increasing the level of fundamentality. It is usually believed that fundamentality is more high level generalizations of scientific ideas, in in this case- ideas about human nature. But even on this path one can reach paradoxes, for example, considering a person as a quantum object, completely abstracting from the physical and chemical processes occurring in the body.

DOCTOR-THINKER OR DOCTOR-GURU?

No one denies that the patient’s faith in healing is important, sometimes even decisive role(remember the placebo effect). So what kind of doctor does a patient need? Confidently pronouncing: “You will be healthy” or thinking for a long time about which medicine to choose in order to get the maximum effect without causing harm?

According to the memoirs of contemporaries, the famous English scientist, thinker and doctor Thomas Young (1773-1829) often froze in indecision at the patient’s bedside, hesitated in making a diagnosis, and often fell silent for a long time, plunging into himself. He honestly and painfully searched for the truth in a very complex and confusing subject, about which he wrote: “There is no science whose complexity surpasses medicine. It goes beyond the limits of the human mind.”

From a psychological point of view, a doctor-thinker does not correspond well to the image of an ideal doctor. He lacks courage, arrogance, and categoricalness, which are often characteristic of the ignorant. Probably, this is human nature: when you get sick, you rely on the quick and energetic actions of the doctor, and not on reflection. But, as Goethe said, “there is nothing worse than active ignorance.” Jung, as a doctor, did not gain much popularity among patients, but among his colleagues his authority was high.

PHYSICS WAS CREATED BY DOCTORS

Know yourself and you will know the whole world. The first is medicine, the second is physics. Initially, the connection between medicine and physics was close; it was not for nothing that joint congresses of naturalists and doctors took place until the beginning of the 20th century. And by the way, physics was largely created by doctors, and they were often prompted to research by the questions posed by medicine.

The medical thinkers of antiquity were the first to think about the question of what heat is. They knew that a person's health is related to the warmth of his body. The great Galen (2nd century AD) introduced the concepts of “temperature” and “degree” into use, which became fundamental for physics and other disciplines. So ancient doctors laid the foundations of the science of heat and invented the first thermometers.

William Gilbert (1544-1603), physician to the Queen of England, studied the properties of magnets. He called the Earth a large magnet, proved it experimentally and came up with a model to describe terrestrial magnetism.

Thomas Young, already mentioned, was a practicing physician, but at the same time made great discoveries in many areas of physics. He is rightfully considered, together with Fresnel, the creator of wave optics. By the way, it was Jung who discovered one of the visual defects - color blindness (the inability to distinguish between red and green colors). Ironically, this discovery immortalized in medicine the name not of the doctor Jung, but of the physicist Dalton, who was the first to discover this defect.

Julius Robert Mayer (1814-1878), who made a huge contribution to the discovery of the law of conservation of energy, served as a doctor on the Dutch ship Java. He treated sailors with bloodletting, which was considered at that time a cure for all diseases. On this occasion, they even joked that doctors released more human blood than was shed on the battlefields in the entire history of mankind. Mayer noticed that when the ship is in the tropics, during bloodletting, venous blood is almost as light as arterial blood (usually venous blood is darker). He suggested that the human body, like a steam engine, in the tropics, at high air temperatures, consumes less “fuel” and therefore emits less “smoke”, which is why the venous blood brightens. In addition, having thought about the words of one navigator that during storms the water in the sea heats up, Mayer came to the conclusion that everywhere there must be a certain relationship between work and heat. He expressed the principles that essentially formed the basis of the law of conservation of energy.

The outstanding German scientist Hermann Helmholtz (1821-1894), also a doctor, independently of Mayer formulated the law of conservation of energy and expressed it in a modern mathematical form, which is still used by everyone who studies and uses physics. In addition, Helmholtz made great discoveries in the field of electromagnetic phenomena, thermodynamics, optics, acoustics, as well as in the physiology of vision, hearing, nervous and muscular systems, invented a number of important instruments. Having received his medical training and being a medical professional, he tried to apply physics and mathematics to physiological research. At the age of 50, the professional doctor became a professor of physics, and in 1888 - director of the Institute of Physics and Mathematics in Berlin.

The French physician Jean-Louis Poiseuille (1799-1869) experimentally studied the power of the heart as a pump that pumps blood, and investigated the laws of blood movement in the veins and capillaries. Having summarized the results obtained, he derived a formula that turned out to be extremely important for physics. For his services to physics, the unit of dynamic viscosity, the poise, is named after him.

The picture showing the contribution of medicine to the development of physics looks quite convincing, but a few more strokes can be added to it. Any motorist has heard about the cardan shaft, which transmits rotational motion at different angles, but few people know that it was invented by the Italian doctor Gerolamo Cardano (1501-1576). The famous Foucault pendulum, which preserves the plane of oscillation, is named after the French scientist Jean-Bernard-Leon Foucault (1819-1868), a doctor by training. The famous Russian doctor Ivan Mikhailovich Sechenov (1829-1905), whose name is given to the Moscow State Medical Academy, studied physical chemistry and established an important physical and chemical law that describes the change in solubility of gases in an aquatic environment depending on the presence of electrolytes in it. This law is still studied by students, and not only in medical schools.

"WE CAN'T UNDERSTAND THE FORMULAS!"

Unlike doctors of the past, many modern medical students simply do not understand why they are taught science subjects. I remember one story from my practice. Tense silence, second-year students of the Faculty of Fundamental Medicine of Moscow State University are writing a test. The topic is photobiology and its application in medicine. Note that photobiological approaches based on the physical and chemical principles of the action of light on matter are now recognized as the most promising for the treatment of cancer. Ignorance of this section and its fundamentals is a serious disadvantage in medical education. The questions are not too difficult, everything is within the framework of the lecture material and seminars. But the result is disappointing: almost half of the students received bad marks. And for everyone who failed the task, one thing is typical - physics was not taught at school or was taught carelessly. For some, this item brings real horror. In a stack tests I came across a sheet of poetry. A student, unable to answer the questions, complained in poetic form that she had to cram not Latin (the eternal torment of medical students), but physics, and at the end exclaimed: “What to do? After all, we are doctors, we can’t understand the formulas!” The young poetess, who called the test “doomsday” in her poems, failed the physics test and eventually transferred to the Faculty of Humanities.

When students, future doctors, operate on a rat, no one would even think of asking why this is necessary, although the human and rat organisms are quite different. Why future doctors need physics is not so obvious. But can a doctor who does not understand the basic physical laws competently work with the most complex diagnostic equipment that modern clinics are crammed with? By the way, many students, having overcome their first failures, begin to study biophysics with passion. At the end of the academic year, when such topics as “Molecular systems and their chaotic states”, “New analytical principles of pH-metry”, “ Physical nature chemical transformations of substances”, “Antioxidant regulation of lipid peroxidation processes”, sophomores wrote: “We discovered the fundamental laws that determine the basis of living things and, possibly, the universe. They were discovered not on the basis of speculative theoretical constructions, but in a real objective experiment. It was hard for us, but interesting." Perhaps among these guys there are future Fedorovs, Ilizarovs, Shumakovs.

“The best way to learn something is to discover it yourself,” said the German physicist and writer Georg Lichtenberg. “What you were forced to discover yourself leaves a path in your mind that you can use again when the need arises.” This one effective principle learning is as old as the world. It underlies the “Socratic method” and is called the principle of active learning. It is on this principle that the teaching of biophysics at the Faculty of Fundamental Medicine is built.

DEVELOPING FUNDAMENTALITY

Fundamentality for medicine is the key to its current viability and future development. You can truly achieve the goal by considering the body as a system of systems and following the path of a more in-depth physico-chemical understanding of it. What about medical education? The answer is clear: to increase the level of students' knowledge in the field of physics and chemistry. In 1992, the Faculty of Fundamental Medicine was created at Moscow State University. The goal was not only to return medicine to the university, but also, without reducing the quality of medical training, to sharply strengthen the natural science knowledge base of future doctors. Such a task requires intensive work by both teachers and students. It is assumed that students consciously choose fundamental medicine rather than conventional medicine.

Even earlier, a serious attempt in this direction was the creation of a medical and biological faculty at the Russian State medical university. Over the 30 years of work of the faculty, a large number of medical specialists have been trained: biophysicists, biochemists and cyberneticists. But the problem of this faculty is that until now its graduates could only study medicine scientific research without having the right to treat the sick. Now this problem is being solved - at the Russian State Medical University, together with the Institute for Advanced Training of Doctors, an educational and scientific complex has been created, which allows senior students to undergo additional medical training.

Doctor of Biological Sciences Y. PETRENKO.

The beginning of the 21st century was marked by many discoveries in the field of medicine, which were written about in science fiction novels 10-20 years ago, and patients themselves could only dream about them. And although many of these discoveries await long road introduction into clinical practice, they no longer belong to the category of conceptual developments, but are actually working devices, even if not yet widely used in medical practice.

1. AbioCor artificial heart

In July 2001, a group of surgeons from Louisville (Kentucky) managed to implant a new generation artificial heart into a patient. The device, called AbioCor, was implanted in a man who suffered from heart failure. The artificial heart was developed by Abiomed, Inc. Although similar devices have been used before, AbioCor is the most advanced of its kind.

In previous versions, the patient had to be connected to a huge console through tubes and wires that were implanted through his skin. This meant that the person remained confined to the bed. AbioCor, on the other hand, exists completely autonomously inside the human body, and does not require additional tubes or wiring that go outside.

2. Bioartificial liver

The idea of ​​​​creating a bioartificial liver came to the mind of Dr. Kenneth Matsumura, who decided to take a new approach to the issue. A scientist has created a device that uses liver cells collected from animals. The device is considered bio-artificial because it consists of biological and artificial material. In 2001, the bioartificial liver was named Invention of the Year by TIME magazine.

3. Tablet with camera

With this pill you can diagnose cancer at the earliest early stages. The device was created with the goal of obtaining high-quality color images in confined spaces. The camera tablet can detect signs of esophageal cancer and is approximately the width of an adult's fingernail and twice as long.

4. Bionic contact lenses

Bionic contact lenses have been developed by researchers at the University of Washington. They were able to connect elastic contact lenses with printed electronic circuitry. This invention helps the user see the world by superimposing computerized pictures on top of their own vision. According to the inventors, bionic contact lenses could be useful for drivers and pilots, showing them routes, weather information or vehicles. In addition, these contact lenses can monitor a person's physical indicators such as cholesterol levels, the presence of bacteria and viruses. The collected data can be sent to a computer via wireless transmission.

5. iLIMB bionic arm

Created by David Gow in 2007, the iLIMB bionic hand was the world's first artificial limb to feature five individually motorized fingers. Users of the device will be able to pick up objects of various shapes - for example, the handles of cups. iLIMB consists of 3 separate parts: 4 fingers, thumb and palms. Each part contains its own control system.

6. Robot assistants during operations

Surgeons have been using robotic arms for some time, but now there is a robot that can perform surgery on its own. A group of scientists from Duke University has already tested the robot. They used it on a dead turkey (since turkey meat has a similar texture to human meat). The success rate of robots is estimated at 93%. Of course, it is too early to talk about autonomous robotic surgeons, but this invention is a serious step in this direction.

7. Mind Reading Device

Mind reading is a term used by psychologists that involves the subconscious detection and analysis of nonverbal cues, such as facial expressions or head movements. Such signals help people understand emotional condition each other. This invention is the brainchild of three scientists from the MIT Media Lab. The mind-reading machine scans the user's brain signals and notifies those with whom communication occurs. The device can be used to work with autistic people.

8. Elekta Access

Elekta Axesse is a modern device to fight cancer. It was created to treat tumors throughout the body - in the spine, lungs, prostate, liver and many others. Elekta Axesse combines several functionality. The device can perform stereotactic radiosurgery, stereotactic radiation therapy, radiosurgery. During treatment, doctors have the opportunity to observe a 3D image of the area that will be treated.

9. Exoskeleton eLEGS

The eLEGS exoskeleton is one of the most impressive inventions of the 21st century. It is easy to use and patients can wear it not only in the hospital but also at home. The device allows you to stand, walk and even climb stairs. The exoskeleton is suitable for people with a height of 157 cm to 193 cm and a weight of up to 100 kg.

10 . Eyewriter

This device is designed to help people who are bedridden communicate. The Eyescratcher is a joint creation of researchers from the Ebeling Group, Not Impossible Foundation and Graffiti Research Lab. The technology is based on cheap, eye-tracking glasses equipped with software with open source code. These glasses allow people with neuromuscular syndrome to communicate by drawing or writing on a screen by capturing eye movements and converting them into lines on a display.

Ekaterina Martynenko

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