Chapter 9
Developing a Low-Cost, Ultraportable,
Modular Device Platform to Improve
Access to Safe Surgery
Debbie L. Teodorescu, Dennis Nagle, Sashidhar Jonnalagedda, Sally Miller,
Robert Smalley and David R. King
9.1 Introduction
9.1.1 Surgical Care as Part of the Global Health
Armamentarium
Over 30% of the global disease burden requires surgical therapy, which could
prevent over 18 million deaths and save USD $200 billion annually. The conditions amenable to surgical therapy range broadly, from traumatic to obstetrical to
infectious to oncological and beyond. Yet, in low–middle-income countries (LMICs),
an estimated two billion people have effectively no access to surgical care, and another
D. L. Teodorescu (B) · D. Nagle
MIT D-Lab, Cambridge, USA
e-mail: DLTeodor@surgibox.org; debbiepl@mit.edu
D. Nagle
e-mail: dennisnagle8@gmail.com
S. Jonnalagedda
Program Essential Tech Cooperation and Development Center EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
e-mail: sashidhar.jonnalagedda@alumni.epfl.ch
S. Miller
MIT Department of Mechanical Engineering, Cambridge, USA
e-mail: millersa@mit.edu
R. Smalley · D. R. King
Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA
e-mail: rob@surgibox.org
D. R. King
e-mail: dking3@mgh.harvard.edu
D. R. King
Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Surgery, Boston, USA
© The Author(s) 2018
S. Hostettler et al. (eds.), Technologies for Development,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-91068-0_9
97
Developing a Low-Cost, Ultraportable,
Modular Device Platform to Improve
Access to Safe Surgery
Debbie L. Teodorescu, Dennis Nagle, Sashidhar Jonnalagedda, Sally Miller,
Robert Smalley and David R. King
9.1 Introduction
9.1.1 Surgical Care as Part of the Global Health
Armamentarium
Over 30% of the global disease burden requires surgical therapy, which could
prevent over 18 million deaths and save USD $200 billion annually. The conditions amenable to surgical therapy range broadly, from traumatic to obstetrical to
infectious to oncological and beyond. Yet, in low–middle-income countries (LMICs),
an estimated two billion people have effectively no access to surgical care, and another
D. L. Teodorescu (B) · D. Nagle
MIT D-Lab, Cambridge, USA
e-mail: DLTeodor@surgibox.org; debbiepl@mit.edu
D. Nagle
e-mail: dennisnagle8@gmail.com
S. Jonnalagedda
Program Essential Tech Cooperation and Development Center EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
e-mail: sashidhar.jonnalagedda@alumni.epfl.ch
S. Miller
MIT Department of Mechanical Engineering, Cambridge, USA
e-mail: millersa@mit.edu
R. Smalley · D. R. King
Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA
e-mail: rob@surgibox.org
D. R. King
e-mail: dking3@mgh.harvard.edu
D. R. King
Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Surgery, Boston, USA
© The Author(s) 2018
S. Hostettler et al. (eds.), Technologies for Development,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-91068-0_9
97