Tuesday, December 13, 2011

Neurosurgical tool developed by amateur radio operator Dr. Kim H. Manwaring N7DFU

A University of Utah surgeon has performed the first successful procedure with the FMwand, a new medical device developed by Salt Lake City-based Domain Surgical that, in essence, acts as a bloodless knife, cauterizing as it cuts.

The device was invented in the Utah basement of a pediatric neurosurgeon, Dr. Kim Manwaring N7DFU. Manwaring was on a quest to find a material that could deliver precise heat. Tinkering in his basement with parts from a ham radio, he came up with the concept for the device and then came across a special alloy developed by a NASA engineer, which he used for the tip of the instrument.

The FDA recently cleared the device for use in humans. Joel MacDonald, M.D., a neurosurgeon with the University of Utah’s Clinical Neurosciences Center and an associate professor in the School of Medicine, used the FMwand during three surgical procedures this week—twice for spine surgeryand once for brain surgery.

Complete article at http://www.healthcanal.com/surgery-rehabilitation/24425-University-Utah-Surgeon-Uses-New-Bloodless-Knife-for-First-time-Humans.html

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