At Johns Hopkins, clinical researchers have developed a set of surgical tools that allow them to more easily create a replacement ear for those born with malformed or missing ears. Currently, using cartilage harvested from the ribs, surgeons can create a new ear, but the process is difficult and requires some artistic talent to sculpt the cartilage into the right shape. These new devices make the procedure more streamlined and efficient.

Imperial College London researchers created a conductive cotton thread that can undergo a computerized embroidery process for incorporation into commercially produced textiles, such as t-shirts and face masks. The thread, called PECOTEX, can be used to create wearable health sensors, such as heart rate monitors, breathing monitors and even gas sensors, including ammonia sensors for the breath, which can provide information on liver and kidney function.

Engineers at MIT have collaborated to develop a robotic drug delivery capsule that is specially designed to administer delicate protein drugs, such as insulin, through the wall of the intestine. Proteins are not suited for oral delivery, as they are typically destroyed by the low pH in the intestine and they can’t pass through the mucus layer that lines the gastrointestinal tract.

We are in the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and across the world, most restrictions have lifted, and society is trying to get back to “normal.” But for many people—potentially millions globally—there is no getting back to normal just yet.