Are we one step from the era of awake anesthesia!I’m not sure if someone has already suggested this …
On reading about the basics of MRI technology, few weeks ago, an idea rose up in my mind .. It's rather a hope.
Hope, about the prospects of our fellows in the fields of physics and biomedical engineering, to develop some new technology for blocking nerve impulse propagation (particularly the pain sensation), via non-invasive techniques or devices, which may work by something like –say- “targeted focal electromagnetic field modulation”, or a new technical principle, that do allow interference with, or stabilization of the resting membrane potential of specific nerves (selected or targeted), as what local anesthetics do to nerves, but with the advantage of being non-invasive, precisely targeting the selected nerves and accessing nerves that were practically inaccessible or difficult to block by the traditional techniques with the local anesthetic agents.
If that proposed technology would prove maximum safety and success, we would then be freed of the limitations caused by interacting factors about the local anesthetics properties, as the duration of action versus accomulation/overdosage & toxicity issues.
Perhaps this technique would also be applied to motor nerves blockade, so that we can for example relax ONLY the muscles of the abdomen for an abdominal surgery, or muscles of a limb for an orthopedic surgery, etc., while the patient is, hopefully, awake and breathing spontaneously satisfactorily.
Both Acute and Chronic pain management might then have a revolution.
Also control of autonomic outflow, both the sympathetic and the cranio-sacral ones might be under precise control in selected parts of the body.
Other merits for this proposed technology might exist as well.
i hope, gratefully, that this idea would get some little attentions, and be endorsed to parties and bodies that have the potentials, and are candidates of bringing this true.
On reading about the basics of MRI technology, few weeks ago, an idea rose up in my mind .. It's rather a hope.
Hope, about the prospects of our fellows in the fields of physics and biomedical engineering, to develop some new technology for blocking nerve impulse propagation (particularly the pain sensation), via non-invasive techniques or devices, which may work by something like –say- “targeted focal electromagnetic field modulation”, or a new technical principle, that do allow interference with, or stabilization of the resting membrane potential of specific nerves (selected or targeted), as what local anesthetics do to nerves, but with the advantage of being non-invasive, precisely targeting the selected nerves and accessing nerves that were practically inaccessible or difficult to block by the traditional techniques with the local anesthetic agents.
If that proposed technology would prove maximum safety and success, we would then be freed of the limitations caused by interacting factors about the local anesthetics properties, as the duration of action versus accomulation/overdosage & toxicity issues.
Perhaps this technique would also be applied to motor nerves blockade, so that we can for example relax ONLY the muscles of the abdomen for an abdominal surgery, or muscles of a limb for an orthopedic surgery, etc., while the patient is, hopefully, awake and breathing spontaneously satisfactorily.
Both Acute and Chronic pain management might then have a revolution.
Also control of autonomic outflow, both the sympathetic and the cranio-sacral ones might be under precise control in selected parts of the body.
Other merits for this proposed technology might exist as well.
i hope, gratefully, that this idea would get some little attentions, and be endorsed to parties and bodies that have the potentials, and are candidates of bringing this true.
