Scientists and doctors have been growing bones, ears and skin in medical labs. The most advanced medical tools that exist around the country are being sent to help America’s veterans and wounded soldiers. Up to a thousand troops are in need of ears, and prosthetics are not a good solution. They don’t appear or feel natural and usually wear down over a short time period. For ears, computers can now model the patients remaining ear, scientists then make a titanium outline covered in collagen, which give skin resistance and strength. They take out a piece of cartilage either from the patient’s nose or in between the ribs and seed scaffold together with the cells, taking it two weeks in a lab dish to grow. When it is ready, a skin graph is taken from the patient to cover the cartilage grown, and then the ear is stitched into place.

         For Bioengineering muscles and skin, scientists are experimenting with “extracellular matrix” which is a connective tissue that clasps cells together. The matrix is thought to discharge chemical signals that stimulate the regrowth of strong skin tissue instead of scar tissue. The material used comes from pigs, which helps the immune system tolerate it because it does not contain cells. It comes in multi-layered pieces that are comparable to gauze pads, how they can be transformed in any shape or length. Doctors have and will still be testing different ways to help our troops with a better recovery. No telling what the future holds for not only skin and muscle replacement but also organ and bone replacements.