What is the NWO Theme Emerging Technologies

Joining small blood vessels with a diameter of 1-2 mm demands a great deal of precision, skill, concentration and time. The recently developed technique of carrying out heart bypasses on the beating heart has made suturing an even more difficult problem, because the heart does not remain still. The surgeon has to ensure that every suture is inserted with the greatest precision; and around 30 sutures are needed to complete the join. They must not be too close to the edge of the vessel, nor too far away.

Devising and developing a method for joining vessels rapidly and without requiring needles or thread is an attractive challenge. Gluing vessels together might be one option, or using a series of micro-staples. And the first 'garden hose couplings' have recently been used in patients. In the United States around EUR 70 million per year is currently being spent on developing these quick-couplings for small blood vessels. Garden hose-style couplings for blood vessels are an example of an emerging technology.

The interfaces between different scientific disciplines and technologies give rise to many more new technologies. Medical science and engineering sciences form such an interface; it is an interface which is giving rise to developments such as knowledge of how to operate on a beating heart or knowledge about surgery and creating three-dimensional images of the interior of the body without having to open up the patient. In principle, the number of such interfaces is unlimited. Examples of fields where new scientific concepts can lead to further technological breakthroughs include quantum technology, photonics, biomimetics, sensor technology, miniaturisation and self-learning systems, as well as systems for data analysis, modelling and simulation.