Biomedical Therapies for Prevention & Treatment of Disease

The biomedical industry continues to grow as knowledge of the field has expanded through the research efforts of universities and biomedical research facilities. With that expanded knowledge comes a great understanding of the nature of disease and the various biomedical therapies used to treat such disease and also how to prevent it as well. Biomedical therapies can be used to treat mental diseases, age-related diseases and those that are the result of pathogens as well.

Mental Diseases and Treatments

• The overall goal of treatment for those with mental health diseases is to improve their quality of life and help them to cope with the illness that plagues their mind. Medical evidence seems to suggest that mental illness can be prevented or at least slowed by the use of proper nutritional methods. This evidence is published throughout medical literature and is confirmed by reports published online by the University of Maryland Medical Center and U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (DHHS). However, dietary and lifestyle prevention are not sure-fire methods for preventing mental illness. The DHHS notes that other methods such as psychotherapeutic medications can also play a key role in the treatment and prevention of disease. Major disorders such as schizophrenia and minor disorders such as anxiety can be treated with specifically developed medications that change the neurochemical processes in the brain so that people with mental disorders can function as normally as possible. In cases where individuals have severe mental illness that leaves them catatonic or unresponsive, low doses of electrical current to stimulate the brain may sometimes be used as well.

Age-Related Disease and Treatments

• As biomedical science moves forward, one of the inevitable questions that will arise and form the basis for further research is what effect the biomedical treatments will have on the prevention and treatment of age-related diseases. While dementia and other diseases of the mind can be classified as "age-related" as well, other signs of aging include increased inflammation in the joints, decreased motor coordination, the development of cataracts and decreased bone density. All of these symptoms of the "disease" that plagues everyone, aging, can be treated through various biomedical treatments as well. Seniors typically take medications for each separate symptom that they manifest throughout their latter years. Research suggests, however, that biomedical pharmaceutics like resveratrol can slow the effects of aging in mice. While research needs to be conducted to see the effects on human subjects, the finding suggests later biomedical application in the alleviation of age-related disease symptoms.

HIV Prevention and Treatment

• The spread of HIV over the last two or three decades has opened up the field of HIV and AIDS-related research in the biomedical industry. Two streams of research currently conducted in the field attempt to deal with the medial problems associated with this disease. On the one hand, biomedical researchers hope to find a treatment to cure the disease and eliminate it from the population. On the other hand, treatments to alleviate or slow the symptoms of the disease may prove to be equally important in improving the quality of life of HIV and AIDS patients. The Center for HIV Identification, Prevention, and Treatment Services (CHIPTS) is one example of a collaborative effort to promote prevention, detection and treatment of HIV. Current biomedical attempts to treat the disease are primarily attempts to create effective vaccines which will destroy the disease-causing pathogen that destroys the human immune system.