Have you found a solution for the pain of bone marrow biopsies?

[pmb_phy]

Are any of you familiar with a bone marrow biopsy? Is so then you're familiar with the enourmous amount of pain it causes.

Have any of you tried to solve this problems utilizing mechanics.

Pete

 

[Tau]

I will get back to you in about 10 years

I should have my Ph.D in Biophysics by then.

Jeremy

 

[LENIN]

Well there is a simpel mechanical solution to this probleme it's derived from Newtons 3'rd law and it seas that no action couses no reaction. So if no bone marrow biopsy is preformed it couses no paine. Aldo this solutions does have a small problem, all the benefits of a bone marrow biopsy are lost.

 

[Danger]

My cousin was a biomedical engineer in New Jersey, and developed a more comfortable needle over 20 years ago. I don't know how widespread its use is, but it involved a rotating inner needle with a razor-sharp bevelled tip that bored into the bone like a hole-saw rather than punching through. Still hurt like hell, but it was an improvement. I wouldn't have much of a clue about how to approach something like this other than maybe Teflon-coating the parts or adding an electrical discharge to block local transmission of pain impulses.

 

[Chronos]

Dang Pete, you going through that again? Will see what I can find.

 

[Danger]

Chronos' post leads me to suspect that this is an on-going experience for you. My sympathies. If you have to undergo it regularly, I'd think that it should be possible to install an access port in the bone itself that could be tapped into instead of having to make new holes every time. How to prevent the bone from over-growing it could be a nasty problem. I can't help thinking that there must be some insurmountable obstacles to it, though, or they'd already be doing it.