NASA Spinoff
Health and Medicine
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Burnishing Techniques Strengthen Hip Implants
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
When compressed air mixes with jet fuel and is ignited in a turbine engine, the temperature can reach 3,000 °F. As a result of this fiery...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Signal Processing Methods Monitor Cranial Pressure
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
When you think of a beating heart, you might assume it beats at regular intervals, but in actuality, velocity and pressure change with...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Hyperspectral Systems Increase Imaging Capabilities
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
While the human eye can see a range of phenomena in the world, there is a larger range that it cannot see. Without the aid of...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Ultraviolet-Blocking Lenses Protect, Enhance Vision
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
In the 1980s, Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) scientists James Stephens and Charles Miller were studying the harmful properties of...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Image-Capture Devices Extend Medicine’s Reach
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
In spring 2008, Dr. Scott Dulchavsky diagnosed high-altitude pulmonary edema in a climber over 20,000 feet up the slope of Mount Everest....
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Medical Devices Assess, Treat Balance Disorders
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
You may have heard the phrase “as difficult as walking and chewing gum” as a joking way of referring to something that is not...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
NASA Bioreactors Advance Disease Treatments
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
The International Space Station (ISS) is falling. This is no threat to the astronauts onboard, however, because falling is part of the ISS...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Robotics Algorithms Provide Nutritional Guidelines
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
On July 5, 1997, a small robot emerged from its lander like an insect from an egg, crawling out onto the rocky surface of Mars. About...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
‘Anti-Gravity’ Treadmills Speed Rehabilitation
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
On Earth, gravity can cause a lot of stress to a person’s bones and muscles, whether the stress is caused by running a marathon or...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Crew Management Processes Revitalize Patient Care
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
In January 2009, birds struck the engines of US Airways Flight 1549 and forced an emergency landing into the Hudson River. Everyone on...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Hubble Systems Optimize Busy Hospital Schedules
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Beginning in 1985, a team of engineers at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore began developing software to manage various...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Web-Based Programs Assess Cognitive Fitness
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Astronauts, pilots, air traffic controllers, truck drivers, shift workers, and mountain climbers have something in common: All are at risk for...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Electrolyte Concentrates Treat Dehydration
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
For astronauts returning to Earth, adjusting to full gravity can be just as demanding as any of the challenges they faced in space. While...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Magnetic Separator Enhances Treatment Possibilities
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Since the earliest missions in space, NASA specialists have performed experiments in low gravity. Protein crystal...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Periodontal Probe Improves Exams, Alleviates Pain
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
“Dentists,” comedian Bill Cosby memorably mused, “tell you not to pick your teeth with any sharp metal object....
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Photorefraction Screens Millions for Vision Disorders
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Who would have thought that stargazing in the 1980s would lead to hundreds of thousands of schoolchildren seeing more clearly today?...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Robotic Joints Support Horses and Humans
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
A rehabilitative device first featured in Spinoff 2003 is not only helping human patients regain the ability to walk, but is now helping our...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Lockable Knee Brace Speeds Rehabilitation
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Marshall Space Flight Center develops key transportation and propulsion technologies for the Space Agency. The Center...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Polymer Coats Leads on Implantable Medical Device
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Langley Research Center’s Soluble Imide (LaRC-SI) was discovered by accident. While researching resins and adhesives for advanced...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
LED Device Illuminates New Path to Healing
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Among NASA’s research goals is increased understanding of factors affecting plant growth, including the effects of...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
In-Line Filtration Improves Hygiene and Reduces Expense
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Water, essential to sustaining life on Earth, is that much more highly prized in the unforgiving realm of space travel and...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Robotics Offer Newfound Surgical Capabilities
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Anyone who has ever worked on a car’s engine or tried to fix a sink knows the frustration of trying to perform precision work in a...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Hierarchical Segmentation Enhances Diagnostic Imaging
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Developed by Dr. James Tilton, a computer engineer with Goddard Space Flight Center's Computational and Information Sciences and...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Multispectral Imaging Broadens Cellular Analysis
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
How does life begin and evolve? Does life exist elsewhere in the universe? What is the future of life on Earth and beyond?
...Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Hand-Held Instrument Fights Acne, Tops Over-the-Counter Market
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
When the U.S. Congress created NASA in 1958, it sought to ensure that the Nation saw returns on its investments in aerospace...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Scheduling Accessory Assists Patients with Cognitive Disorders
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Neuropsychology is the study of how the brain relates to behavior, emotion, and cognition. Clinical neuropsychologists...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Noninvasive Test Detects Cardiovascular Disease
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
For decades now, NASA has been sending spacecraft throughout the galaxy. Once in the cosmos, these crafts use advanced cameras to create...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
Circulation-Enhancing Device Improves CPR
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
Ever stand up too quickly from a sitting or lying position and feel dizzy or disoriented for a brief moment? The downward push of Earth's gravity...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
The Right Track for Vision Correction
More and more people are putting away their eye-glasses and contact lenses as a result of laser vision correction surgery. LASIK, the most widely performed version of this surgical procedure,...
Spinoff: Health and Medicine
A Look From The Inside
Originating Technology/NASA Contribution
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has given the world amazing images of the distant stars, planets, and galaxies. The cutting-edge imaging technology that enhances the...