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News Release
Office of News and Information
Johns Hopkins University
901 South Bond Street, Suite 540
Baltimore, Maryland 21231
Phone: 443-287-9960 | Fax: 443-287-9920
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June 6, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Phil Sneiderman
443-287-9960
prs@jhu.edu
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Students' Device May Improve
Chest Closure after Heart Surgery
Additional Images
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Photo C: Here are four views
of the tool devised by Johns Hopkins biomedical
engineering students as part of a new system to
close the chest after heart surgery. The long
extension piece is used to guide a polymer
cable tie between and under the ribs so that
a surgeon can use it to pull together pieces
of the severed sternum. |
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Photo D: After the
cable tie is looped through the ribs, one
end is reinserted in the tool. When the
handles are squeezed, it operates like a
ratchet to pull pieces of the breastbone
firmly together so they can heal. |
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Photo E: The student inventors
say their cable ties should reduce the risk of injuries
that
are sometimes caused by the steel wires currently used
to close the chest after heart surgery. They recommend
the use of a biocompatible polymer material that
dissolves harmlessly in the body. |
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Photo F: Chris Weier
Photo by Will Kirk |
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Photo G: Neha Malhotra
Photo by Will Kirk |
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