Free Republic

Technology will move from existing outside our bodies to residing inside us. That's the next big frontier. Here are nine signs that implantable tech is here now, growing rapidly, and that it will be part of your life (and your body) in the near future.

Federal health regulators will begin tracking millions of medical devices, from pacemakers to hip replacements, using a new electronic system designed to protect patients by catching problematic implants earlier. The Food and Drug Administration published new rules Friday that require most medical devices sold in the U.S. to carry a unique code, identifying its make, manufacture date and lot number. The codes will be stored in a publicly accessible database to help regulators, doctors and companies monitor safety issues with devices. The tracking system has been promoted by doctors and public safety advocates for years. Other industries, from food processors...

Dissolvable electronic materials could be used in medical implants and environmentally friendly gadgets. A team of researchers has designed flexible electronic components that can dissolve inside the body, and in water. The components could be used to make smart devices that disintegrate once they are no longer useful, helping to alleviate electronic waste and enabling the development of medical implants that don’t need to be surgically removed. So far, the team has designed an imaging system that monitors tissue from within a mouse, a thermal patch that prevents infection after a surgical site is closed up, solar cells and strain...