Top Medical Innovations of 2019

Medical advancements in technology and patient care are surrounding us daily and the innovations are incredible. Every year, the Cleveland Clinic puts out a list of the top ten medical innovations to discuss their favorite advancements of the year. 

Cleveland Clinic is a nonprofit multi-specialty academic medical center that integrates clinical and hospital care with research and education. Located in Cleveland, Ohio, it was founded in 1921 by four renowned physicians with a vision of providing outstanding patient care based upon the principles of cooperation, compassion and innovation.

The physicians and medical community that provide feedback regarding their top innovative choices have to follow a stringent guideline of four rules:

1. There must be a significant benefit to the patient and user-related functionality
2. There must be a high probability of commercial success
3. The product must be in or exiting clinical trials and ready for market within the year
4. Human interest and human impact needs to be significant

This article will discuss the top five Cleveland Clinic picks in detail, but will include a list of the top ten.

The Top Ten Medical Innovations of 2019

1. Pain Management
2. Artificial Intelligence
3. Expanded Window for Acute Stroke Intervention
4. Cancer Treatment Immunotherapy 
5. 3D Printing and Patient Specific Products
6. Medical Education Virtual and Mixed Reality
7. Stroke Diagnosis Visor
8. Robotic Surgery Innovation
9. Percutaneous Replacement and Repair of Mitral and Tricuspid
10. RNA-Based Therapies 

Pain Management to Curb Opioid Addiction

​The opioid crisis has recently shifted from an epidemic to a crisis and pain management solutions have a drastic need to improve. Stimwave Technologies currently has the world’s only wireless FDA-approved, micro-sized device that treats neuropathic pain throughout the body. It uses spinal cord stimulation to treat pain in the back, legs, shoulders, wrists, elbows, knees, hips, and more—making it easier for patients to be treated with an economical and similarly strong alternative to opioids. 

Artificial Intelligence and Clinical Care

​Artificial intelligence is making its way into clinical care. The day is approaching where AI can match and potentially exceed human intelligence in five arenas—seeing, hearing, reasoning, analyzing, and decision-making. AI will be very useful in reducing costs, identifying pathology, and interpreting electronic health data.

Acute Stroke Intervention—Expanded Window for Treatment

​When it comes to stroke intervention, time is of the essence. Prolonging the time frame to respond can ensure significant improvements to the side of effects surrounding acute stroke intervention. Lack of blood flow can lead to loss of brain function, disability, and death. The American Heart Association and the American Stroke Association have provided new research to indicate that the window of treatment for acute stroke intervention has expanded.

Immunotherapy—The Fourth Cancer Treatment Option

​Immunotherapy in cancer treatment has added a fourth option to the current list of three treatment options—chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation. It teaches the immune system how to target cancer cells and kill them (and in some cases is a lot more successful than chemotherapy).

Most patients with cancer receive chemotherapy, a treatment that uses drugs to kill cancer cells. Immunotherapy, on the other hand, doesn’t target the cancer directly. Instead, it harnesses the power of a person’s immune system to fight back against the cancer. Normally, cancer cells are smart and know how to hide from our immune system. But through immunotherapy treatments, the immune system learns how to identify cancer cells and kill them.

Patient Specific Products Using 3D Printing

​General Electrics in a leader in medical innovation regarding 3D imaging in healthcare. Partnering with the VA Puget Sound and the Veterans Health Administration Innovators Network, GE is advancing visualization in 3D imaging using 3D software. They are working with radiologists to 3D print images that enable a higher level of patient data analysis and care.

VHA 3D Printing Advisory Committee chair, Beth Ripley in 2018 stated, “for most radiologists, 3D images are limited to reconstructions on a computer screen, so by harnessing the power of 3D printing with a rich data set, we are able to pull images out of the screen and into our hands, allowing us to interact with the data in a deeper way to fuel innovative, personalized care based on the unique needs of each of our patients.”

The Future of Medical Innovation

​Amazing advancements in medical technology surrounding patient analysis and patient care is happening all around us. As medical needs change and technology is developed, patient care will become more personal and more exact. 

About the Author

Carevoyance contributor Sarah Pike, M.B.A., is a freelance marketing copywriter based in San Diego. She enjoys writing about business, fashion, food, healthcare, leadership, motivation and technology.