Application of ultrasound has been shown to speed broken bone regeneration by one third, and even restore memory to mice with Alzheimer's. Now researchers have found that ultrasound can accelerate healing time of skin wounds too.
The elderly and those with diabetes can often develop chronic healing defects such as skin ulcers and bedsores. Chronic wounds like foot ulcers lead to major limb amputation if not healed properly. In a recent animal study published in the Journal of Investigative of Dermatology, researchers at the University of Bristol found that low-intensity ultrasound helped increase the healing time of wounds in diabetic and aged mice by 30 percent. This accelerated healing may not be as fast Wolverine's, but it could be the difference between keeping or losing a foot.
The equipment was not much different from what is used to monitor a foetus during pregnancy. However, the vibration of the sound waves activated a protein pathway that helped fibroblast cells, which are important to healing, migrate to the wound.
http://www.popsci.com/sound-waves-accelerate-healing
[Press Release]: http://www.bristol.ac.uk/news/2015/july/skin-healing.html
(Score: 1, Offtopic) by PinkyGigglebrain on Thursday July 16 2015, @08:43AM
I remember reading that a cats purr had the same effect. And just petting a cat (OK, yeah, any pet, even a frog) lowered a persons blood pressure.
"Beware those who would deny you Knowledge, For in their hearts they dream themselves your Master."
(Score: 2) by davester666 on Friday July 17 2015, @02:01AM
So, does rubbing a cat on a paraplegic person do the same thing?