Medical Biotech
Classification
Medical biotechnology includes: medicines (herbals, drugs), diagnostic machines, surgery, and therapeutic machines.
Inventions from the ORAL ERA Era
| Invention | Description | Year | Inventor | Country |
| Trepanning | holes cut into skull | 65,000 BCE | France, Europe | |
| Dentistry | infected tooth cleaning | 12,000 BCE | Northern Italy |
Inventions from the TOKENS ERA Era
| Invention | Description | Year | Inventor | Country |
| Dental drill | dentistry | 7000 BCE | Indus River | |
| Hallucinogenic mushrooms | ceremony | 7000 BCE | Subsaharan Africa | |
| Toothpaste | oral hygiene | 5000 BCE | Egypt | |
| Opium domestication | powerful pain relief | 5000 BCE | Europe (67) |
Inventions from the WRITTEN ERA Era
| Invention | Description | Year | Inventor | Country |
| Wine as anesthesia | highly intoxicated | 3500 BCE | Mesopotamia | |
| Tattoo | skin scar/pigment | 3200 BCE | Otzi the Iceman | Alps of Europe |
| Willow bark | aspirin herbal | 3000 BCE | Egypt | |
| Honey | wound treatment | 2800 BCE | Egypt | |
| Soap | very harsh initially | 2800 BCE | Mesopotamia (Sumer) (52) | |
| Mummification | anatomic preservation | 2600 BCE | Egypt | |
| Acupuncture | needle therapy | 2500 BCE | China | |
| Garlic as mosquito repellant | malaria prevention | 2500 BCE | Egypt | |
| Mosquito bed netting | sheer fabric | 2500 BCE | Egypt | |
| Opium as anesthesia | narcotic herbal | 2000 BCE | Egypt | |
| Calamine, zinc oxide, iron oxide | skin rash Rx | 1500 BCE | Egypt | |
| Toe prosthesis | toe replacement | 950 BCE | Egypt | |
| Dentures | false teeth | 750 BCE | Italy |
Inventions from the ALPHABET ERA Era
| Invention | Description | Year | Inventor | Country |
| Moldy bean curds as antibiotic | 500 BCE | Egypt/Greece | ||
| Prosthetic limb | 550 BCE | India/Persia | ||
| Ephedrine herbal stimulant | 100 BCE | China | ||
| Artemisinin/quinine | herbal malaria treatment | 0-1600 AD | China/Latin America |
Inventions from the PRINT ERA Era
| Invention | Description | Year | Inventor | Country |
| Toothbrush | boar's hair | 1498 AD | China | |
| Quinine bark | for malaria treatment | 1672 AD | Jesuit missionaries, New World natives | Latin America |
| Randomized controlled clinical trial | bias free clinical testing experiment | 1747 AD | James Lind | UK (96) |
| Appendectomy | successful | 1763 AD | Claudius Aymand | France |
| Vaccination | infectious disease prevention | 1796 AD | Edward Jenner | UK (18) |
| Morphine general anesthesia | 1804 AD | Hanaoka Seishu | Japan | |
| Lighted endoscope | endoscopy | 1805 AD | Philipp Bozzini | Austria |
| Dental floss | oral hygiene | 1815 AD | Levi Spear Palmly | USA |
| Stethescope | medical listening | 1816 AD | Renae Laennec | France |
Inventions from the WIRED ERA Era
| Invention | Description | Year | Inventor | Country |
| Hypodermic syringe | medicine delivery not by mouth | 1844, 1853 | Francis Rynd, Charles Gabriel Pravaz, Alexander Wood | France/UK (23) |
| Ether general anesthesia | first true general anesthesia | 1842 | Crawford W. Long, William Morton | USA |
| Ophthalmoscope | eye inspection | 1851 | Hermann Ludwig Ferdinand von Helmhotz | Germany |
| Aspirin synthesized | acetylsalicyclic acid | 1853 | Charles Fredic Gerhardt | Germany |
| Snellen eye test | visual acuity | 1862 | Hermann Snellen | Netherlands |
| Modern thermometer clinical | fever test | 1866 | Thomas Albutt | UK |
| Vaccine for cholera | first successful bacterial vaccine | 1879 | Waldemar Mordecai Haffkine, Pasteur Instittute | France |
| Autoclave | sterilization instruments | 1879 | Charles Chamberlain | |
| Modern otoscope | ear examination | 1881 | A. Hartman | Germany |
| Rabies vaccine | previously fatal | 1882 | Louis Pasteur | France |
| Tetanus and diphtheria vaccines | 1890 | Emil von Behring | Germany | |
| Modern toothpaste and toothpaste tube | oral hygiene | 1892 | Washington Wentworth Sheffield | USA |
| X-ray imaging | first medical imaging | 1895 | Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen | Germany (59) |
| Sphygmomanometer | practical | 1896 | Scipione Riva-Rocci | Italy |
| Rotator cuff tendon repair | shoulder surgery | 1898 | Wilhelm Muller | Germany |
| ABO blood groups | compatibility for transfusions | 1900 | Karl Landskiner | Austria (51) |
| EKG | electrocardiogram machine | 1903 | Willem Einthoven | Netherlands |
| Barium sulfate contrast | x-ray imaging, complex | 1905 | USA/Germany | |
| Arsphenamine chemotherapy | for syphilis and African sleeping sickness | 1907 | Alfred Bertheim, Paul Erlich | Germany |
| IUD intrauterine device | contraception drug free | 1909 | Richard Richter | Germany |
| Latex condom | contraception | 1912 | Julius Fromm | Poland/Germany |
| Isoniazid | for tuberculosis | 1912 | Meyer and Malley | Czechoslovakia |
| Heparin | anticoagulant, blood thinner | 1916 | Jay McClean, William Henry Howell | USA |
| Knee arthroscopy | minimal surgery | 1919 | Kenji Takagi | Japan |
Inventions from the WIRELESS ERA Era
| Invention | Description | Year | Inventor | Country |
| Epidural anesthesia | regional anesthesia | 1921 | Fidel Pages | Spain |
| Band aid | sterile adhesive bandage | 1921 | Earle Dickson | USA |
| Polygraph | lie detector test | 1921 | John Augustus Larson | USA |
| Q tips | cotton tipped swabs | 1923 | Leo Gerstenzang | USA |
| Electroencephalogram | EEG test, brain electrical activity | 1924 | Hans Berger | Germany |
| Carpal tunnel release surgery | treatment for hand numbness and pain | 1924 | Herbert Galloway | Canada |
| Tetanus toxoid vaccine | prevents lock jaw infection | 1925 | Alexander Thomas Glenny et al. | UK |
| Pertussis vaccine | prevents whooping cough | 1926 | Leila Denmark | USA |
| Diphtheria toxoid vaccine | prevents diphtheria | 1927 | Alexander Thomas Glenny et al. | UK |
| Iron lung respirator | breathing machine | 1927 | Phillip Drinker,Louis Agassiz Shaw | USA |
| Penicillin | blockbuster antibiotic | 1928 | Alexander Fleming | UK (19) |
| Cardiac pacemaker | wired heart rhythm correction | 1928 | Mark Lidwell | Australia |
| Cotton tampon | menstruation management | 1930 | Earle Cleveland Haas | USA |
| Breathalyzer | blood alcohol assessment | 1931 | Rolla Neil Harger, Indiana U. | USA |
| Hydrocortisone | potent anti-inflammatory medication | 1936 | Percy Lavon Julian | USA |
| Blood bank | transfusion management | 1937 | Charles Richard Drew, Bernard Fantus, Chicago | USA |
| Hip replacement surgery | fractures, arthritis | 1940 | Austin Moore | USA |
| Hemodialysis | replaces kidney function | 1943 | Willem J. Kolff | Netherlands |
| Lidocaine, Xylocaine | local anesthesia | 1943 | Nils Lofgren | Sweden |
| Chemotherapy for cancer | nitrogen mustard | 1946 | Alfred Gilman, Louis S. Goodman | USA |
| Methotrexate immunosupression | treat inflammation | 1947 | Sidney Farber | USA |
| Acetaminophen (Tylenol) | pain reliever, antipyretic | 1948 | Julius Axelrod, Bernard Brodie | USA |
| Electrolyte replacement for diarrhea | oral and intravenous fluids | 1949 | Daniel C. Darrow, Harold Harrison | USA |
| Succinylcholine | muscle relaxant for anesthesia paralysis | 1949 | Daniel Bovet | Italy |
| Artificial intraocular lens | lens replacement for cataracts | 1949 | Harold Ridley | UK |
| Holter monitor | detects abnormal heart rhythms | 1949 | Norman Jeffferis Holter | USA |
| Nystatin, Mycostatin | antifungal medicine | 1950 | Rachel Fuller Brown, Elizabeth Lee Hazen | USA |
| Thorazine, chlorpromazine | psychotrophic medicine | 1951 | Heni Laborit, Pierre Deniker, Heinz Lehmann | France/Canada (87) |
| Salk polio vaccine | polio prevention | 1952 | Jonas Salk | USA |
| Apgar score | newborn health assessment | 1952 | Virginia Apgar | USA |
| Isoniazid for tuberculosis | second biggest killer in history | 1952 | Meyer and Malley | Czechoslovakia |
| Heart lung machine | allows for heart surgery on a stopped heart | 1953 | John Heysham Gibbon | USA |
| Vancomycin antibiotic | treats severe staph and strep infections | 1953 | Edmund Kornfeld | USA |
| Cochlear implant | hearing surgery | 1953 | Andre Djourno | France |
| Catheter surgery | minimally invasive surgery, Seldinger technique | 1953 | Sven Ivar Seldinger | Sweden (79) |
| Ultrasound, echocardiogram | sound waves for diagnosis | 1953, 1956 | Inge Edler, Carl Hertz, Ian Donald, Tom Browen | Sweden /UK (75) |
| Prednisone | cortisone pill anti-inflammatory | 1954 | Arthur Noble | UK |
| Kidney transplant | most common organ transplant | 1954 | Joseph E. Murray | USA |
| Cardiopulmonary resuscitation | CPR | 1954 | Peter Safar, James Elam | USA |
| Chlorhexidine | topical skin disinfectant | 1954 | Imperial Chemical Industries, Ld. | UK |
| Betadine, povodine-iodine | topical skin disinfectant | 1955 | H.A. Shelanski, M.V. Shelanski | USA |
| Metered dose inhaler | asthma/COPD therapy | 1956 | Charlie Thiel, 3M | USA |
| Bone marrow transplant | blood cancer therapy | 1956 | E. Donnall Thomas | USA |
| Birth control pill | sexual freedom, contraception | 1956, 1960 | Gregory Pincus, John Rock, Min Chueh Chang | USA (100) |
| Endoscopy, fiberoptic flexible | upper and lower gastrointestinal | 1957 | Basil Hirschowitz, Larry Curtis, Wilbur Peters | USA |
| Haloperidol, Haldol | antipsychotic, schizophrenia | 1958 | Paul Janssen | Belgium |
| Lasix, furosemide diuretic | for swelling, edema, fluid retention | 1959 | Sanofi | USA |
| Valium, diazepam sedative | for anxiety | 1959 | Leo Sternbach | USA |
| DOPA for Parkinson's disease | anti-tremor effects | 1960 | Oleh Hornykiewicz | Austria |
| Coronary artery bypass graft, heart | CABG | 1960 | Robert Goetz, Michael DeBakey | USA |
| Ibuprofen, Motrin, Advil | non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicine | 1960 | Stewart Adams | UK |
| Liver and lung transplants | organ transplants | 1963 | Thomas Starzl, James Hardy | USA |
| Portable heart defibrillator | advanced CPR | 1965 | Frank Pantridge | UK |
| Commercial ultrasound | obstetrics | 1965 | Walter Erich Krause | USA |
| Rubella vaccine | prevents German measles | 1965 | Harry Martin Meyer, Paul Parkman | USA |
| Oral Sabin vaccine | prevents polio with no injection needed | 1966 | Albert Bruce Sabin | USA |
| Heart transplant | successful | 1967 | Christiaan Neethling Barnard | South Africa |
| Fogarty balloon catheter | removes clots, minimally invasive | 1969 | Thomas Fogarty | USA |
| Digital thermometer | more accurate temperatures | 1970 | Robert Cherry Martin | USA |
| Transdermal patch | drug delivery through the skin | 1971 | Alejandro Zaffaroni | USA |
| Pulse oximeter | measures blood oxygen level | 1972 | Takuo Aoyagi | Japan |
| Computed tomography scan | CT scan | 1972 | Godfrey Hounsfield, Allan Cormack, Robert S. Ledley | UK/USA |
| Magnetic resonance imaging | MRI scan, no radiation | 1973 | Raymond Damadian, Paul Lauterbur | USA (74) |
| Prozac | antidepressant medication | 1972 | Ray W. Fuller, Bryan B. Molloy, David T. Wong | USA |
| LASER eye surgery, Lasik | vision correction with surgery | 1973 | Mani Lal Bhaumik | India/USA |
| Liposuction | cosmetic surgery | 1974 | Giorgio Fischer | Italy |
| Total knee replacement surgery | cemented metal and plastic parts | 1974 | John Insall | USA |
| Heimlich maneuver | food bolus extraction | 1974 | Henry Judah Heimlich | USA |
| Versed, midazelam | conscious sedation IV | 1975 | Armin Walser | Switzerland |
| Positron emission tomography | PET scan, cancer assessment | 1977 | Edward J. Hoffman, UCLA | USA |
| In vitro fertilization | test tube baby | 1978 | Patrick Steptoe, Robert Edwards | UK |
| Lithotrypter for gallstones | focused sound to break down gallstones | 1980 | Claude Dornier | Germany |
| Hepatitis B test and vaccine | diagnosis and prevents hepatitis B | 1980 | Baruch Samuel Blumberg | USA |
| Mumps vaccine | prevents mumps | 1981 | Maurice Hilleman | USA |
| Artificial heart | Jarvik -7 | 1982 | Paul Winchell, Willem Johan Kolff, Robert Jarvik | USA |
| Humulin | recombinant insulin | 1982 | Genentech | USA |
| RU-486 abortion pill | avoids surgery | 1988 | Etienne-Emile Baulieu | France |
| Intravascular stent | catheter placed stent in obstructed blood vessel | 1988 | Julio Palmaz | Argentina |
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Inventions from the INTERNET ERA Era
| Invention | Description | Year | Inventor | Country |
| Protease inhibitors | Invirase for AIDS/HIV | 1990 | Joseph A. Martin, Sally Redshaw | USA |
| H. flu vaccine | prevents Haemophilus influenza in children | 1992 | David Smith | USA |
| Hepatitis A vaccine | prevents hepatitis A | 1993 | Stephen Mark Feinstone, Albert Kapikian, Robert Purcell | USA |
| Implanted bionic limb | human/machine hybrid | 1993 | David James Gow | UK |
| Catheter intracardiac cardioverter defibrillator placement | ICD | 1994 | Michel Mirowski, Morton Mower | USA |
| Portable defibrillator | advanced CPR | 1997 | Frank Pantridge | Ireland |
| Viagra, sildenafil citrate | erectile dysfunction treatment | 1997 | Peter Dunn, Albert Wood, Pfizer | USA |
| Stem cell lines | stem cell therapy | 1998 | James Alexander Thomson | USA |
| CRISPR technique-Cas9 | DNA splicing genes | 2001 | Jennifer Doudna | USA (93) |
| Telesurgery | remotely performed videosurgery | 2001 | Michael Gagner, Jacques Marescaux | USA/France |
| Clot inducing bandage, chitosan | less bleeding with wounds | 2002 | HemCon | USA |
| Meningitis vaccine | prevents some forms of meningitis | 2003 | Rino Rappuoli | Italy/USA |
| Chicken pox vaccine | varicella prevention | 2005 | Michiaki Takahashi | Japan |
| Human papilloma virus vaccine, recombinant | prevents cervical cancer | 2006 | Ian Frazer | UK/Australia |
| Freestyle continuous glucose monitoring | more effective diabetes treatment and control | 2007 | Abbott Diabetes Care | USA |
| Rotavirus vaccine | prevents rotavirus infection | 2007 | H. Fred Clark, Paul Offit | USA |
| Hepatitis C treatment, sofosbuvir | cures hepatitis C in most cases | 2007 | Michael J. Sofia | USA |
| Full face transplant | extreme cosmetic surgery | 2008 | Laurent Lantieri | France |
| Breathalyzer for lung cancer diagnosis | some lung cancer types | 2009 | Israel Institute of Technology | Israel |
| Electronic stethoscope | more sensitive to sound | 2010 | 3M/Littman | USA |
| Uterus transplant | allows birth in many cases | 2011 | Omer Ozkan, Muniere Erman Akar | Turkey |