Best Inventions 2005: Healthy Options

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MATT FLYNN/COOPER-HEWITT MUSEUM, ELLIS DEVELOPMENT

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Inventor: Ellis Developments Ltd.
Availability: Now, in England only
To Learn More: ellisdev.co.uk
It may look like a delicate doily, but the Bioimplantable Device is a rugged internal bandage that helps patients recover swiftly from shoulder-joint-replacement surgery. Made of standard polyester surgical thread, the device has an embroidered pattern that gives it strength and flexibility while imitating human tendons. Once implanted between muscles and bones, the device is never removed; it becomes part of the body as cells grow over it. This technology is also being used to replace slipped disks in the neck and to aid in clavicle-replacement surgery.
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