Medical tricorder

Main article: Tricorder
Smartphones may be used as medical tricorders; smartphone software and camera detect pulse from a fingertip using a technique similar to that of a pulse oximeters.

A medical tricorder is a handheld[1] portable[2] scanning device to be used by consumers[3] to self-diagnose medical conditions[4] within seconds[3] and take basic vital measurements. While the device is not yet on the mass market, there are numerous reports of other scientists and inventors also working to create such a device as well as improve it. A common view is that it will be a general-purpose tool similar in functionality to a Swiss Army Knife to take health measurements such as blood pressure and temperature, and blood flow in a noninvasive way.[5] It would diagnose a person's state of health after analyzing the data,[1] either as a standalone device or as a connection to medical databases via an Internet connection.

The TV show Star Trek had a fictional Dr. McCoy who used a device called a tricorder to examine patients in an instant. The fictional device has spawned a search for its real-life equivalent.

The idea of a medical tricorder comes from an imaginary device on the science fiction TV show Star Trek from the 1960s which featured fictional character Dr. Leonard McCoy using it to instantly diagnose medical conditions.[1][3][6] One description of the fictional device was as follows:

The medical tricorder has a detachable, high-resolution, hand-held scanner that sends life-sign information to the tricorder itself. It can check all vital organ functions, detect the presence of dangerous organisms, and human physiology. Its data banks also contain information on non-human races known to the Federation, thereby making it possible to treat other life-forms.

— report in the BBC[7]

Several reports suggest that there may be opposition to the development of such a device by national medical regulating authorities such as the Food and Drug Administration in the United States, as well as possible opposition by doctors unwilling to permit consumers to do extensive self-diagnosis which might result in inappropriate self-medication.[3][8] There is agreement that such a device could bring huge increases in productivity and cost-savings,[3] and spur a billion dollar market. There are signs that over a hundred venture-capital firms have invested $1.1 billion in digital health technology in 2012.[3]

  1. ^ a b c Frank Simons (April 13, 2012). "Scientist beams up a real "Star Trek" tricorder". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2012-12-01.
  2. ^ Michael Pollitt (5 September 2007). "Boldly going where no mass spectrometer has gone before: Scientists are building a sensing device that comes close to Spock's tricorder and which could speed up the analysis of materials". The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-12-01.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "The dream of the medical tricorder: Medical technology: The hand-held diagnostic devices seen on "Star Trek" are inspiring a host of medical add-ons for smartphones". The Economist. December 1, 2012. Retrieved 2012-12-01.
  4. ^ Torie Bosch (Jan 10, 2012). "Inspired by Star Trek, $10 Million X-Prize Searches for Real-Life Tricorder". Slate Magazine. Retrieved 2012-12-01.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference tws2A15 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Sonia Zjawsinki (September 23, 2009). "Look What's on Display at Gizmodo's Gallery: Gadgetwise". The New York Times. Retrieved 2012-12-01.
  7. ^ "'Star Trek' - The Tricorder". BBC. Retrieved 2012-12-01.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference tws2A14 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).