1 . Very few people enjoy going to the dentist, especially for a filling. Often fillings need to be replaced during the patient’s lifetime. But is filling the cavity (蛀牙洞) with a foreign material really the best treatment? Is it possible that the tooth could repair itself with its own material — dentine (牙质)? Researchers at King’s College London have found a process that may replace the traditional method.
Paul Sharpe of King’s College London says the new treatment for cavities is simpler. It uses a drug that causes the tooth to fill in the hole naturally with dentine. “It involves putting a drug in the hole. It excites a natural process, which starts to occur anyway following the damage, so you can actually get the big hole repaired and the repair is the production of the natural material, the dentine.”
Usually a new drug requires repeated testing before it is approved for treatment. However, this drug that produces the regrowth material in teeth has already been approved. It is a drug used to treat Alzheimer’s disease and other disorders of the nervous system. Researchers explain that they use only a small amount and they use it locally. Usually that means the medicine is put directly on the affected area. It does not travel through the patient’s blood.
Nigel Carter heads Britain’s Oral Health Foundation. He describes the new treatment as an exciting possibility for dental care. But Carter also has a warning, “Actually regrowing the tooth that has been lost with a cavity would be really a huge step forward. But it's also important that we remember that filling the cavity is not the first place. It’s a preventable disease.”
1. When it comes to the dental treatment, researchers at King’s College London focus on .| A．why the cavity must be filled | B．what skills dentists should learn |
| C．when people have to see a dentist | D．how the tooth can repair itself |
| A．the full use of a new drug | B．the natural process of tooth repair |
| C．the good quality of filling materials | D．the practical way of finding the damage early |
| A．It has little effect on Alzheimer’s disease. |
| B．It is being tested before it gets final approval. |
| C．It has been put to use for treating other diseases. |
| D．It travels through the patients' blood and has side effects. |
| A．We should take good care of our teeth in daily life. |
| B．When you find the cavity, it is unnecessary to get it filled. |
| C．Taking exercise is the best way to prevent dental disease. |
| D．When you find a damaged tooth, you'd better repair it. |
2 . Robotic surgery is one thing, but sending a robot inside the body to car you tan operation is quite another, which has long been a goal of some researchers to produce tiny robotic devices. These devices are capable of traveling through the body to deliver drugs or to make repairs without the need for a single cut, the possibility of which has just got a bit closer.
However, unlike the plot of one film — which featured a microscopic crew and submarine traveling through a scientist’s bloodstream this device could not be put into blood vessels (血管) because it is too big. While other types of miniature robots that can be swallowed were developed in the past, their role has mostly been limited to capturing images inside the body. In a presentation this week to the International Conference, Daniela Rus and Shuhei Miyashita of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology described a robot they have developed that can be swallowed and used to collect dangerous objects accidentally taken in.
To test their latest version, Dr. Rus and Dr. Miyashita designed a robot as a battery hunter, which might seem to be an odd task. However, more than 3,500 people in America alone, most of them children, swallow the tiny button cells used in small electronic devices by accident every year. To start with, the researchers created an artificial esophagus (食道) and stomach made out of silicone (硅胶). It was closely modeled on that found in a pig and filled with medical liquid; the robot itself is made from several layers of different materials, including pig intestine (肠), and contains a little magnet (磁铁). This is folded up and wrapped in a 10mmx27mm capsule of ice. Once this reaches the stomach, the ice melts and the robot unfolds which is moved and guided with the use of a magnetic field outside the body. In their tests, the robot was able to touch a button battery and draw it with its own magnet, and during dragging it along, the robot could then be directed towards the intestines where it would eventually be gotten rid of through the anus. After it, the researchers sent in another robot loaded, with medication to deliver it to the site of the battery to speed up healing.
The artificial stomach being transparent on one side, the researchers can see the batteries and visually control the robots. If not, that will require the help from imaging system, which will be a bit more of a challenge, but Dr. Rus and Dr. Miyashita, are determined to succeed.
1. According to the passage, the robot operation will probably be able to .| A．travel through a scientist’s bloodstream |
| B．photograph the body to convey it to the doctor |
| C．enter the body to deliver drugs or make repairs |
| D．operate on a person outside the body completely |
| A．the researchers did the experiment on a chosen animal |
| B．the robot took necessary drugs besides a little magnet |
| C．digesting the swallowed batteries is difficult for children |
| D．the actual size of the robot maybe larger than the capsule of ice |
| A．The surgeries will cost patients much money. |
| B．Patients will suffer less for some surgeries. |
| C．Fewer children will swallow the button cells. |
| D．A robot will be invented traveling blood vessels. |
| A．An Experiment on Robot | B．Tiny Robot, Significant Role |
| C．The Robotic Voyage in Body | D．The Exploration of Robot Technology |
3 . Professors at the University of California San Diego have developed microrobots, which can be a potential treatment for life-threatening cases of bacterial pneumonia, a serious disease affecting lungs and making breathing difficult. In mice, the microrobots safely removed pneumonia-causing bacteria in the lungs and resulted in 100% survival while untreated mice all died within three days after infection.
The microrobots are made of algae (藻类) cells whose surfaces are covered with substances that are filled with antibiotics (抗生素). The algae provides movement, which allows the microrobots to swim around and make antibiotics go directly to more bacteria in the lungs, helping absorb bacteria and clear them of infected cells. This give the microrobots the ability to reduce bacterial infection, which in turn makes them more effective at fighting lung infection.
The work is a joint effort by engineering professors Joseph and Zhang Liangfang. Together, they have pioneered the development of tiny drug-delivering robots that can be safely used in live animals to treat bacterial infections in the stomach and blood. Treating bacterial lung infection is the latest in their line of work.
“In the traditional treatment, sometimes only a very small number of antibiotics will get into the lungs. That’s why many current antibiotic treatments for pneumonia don’t work as well as needed,” said Victor Nizet, a co-worker of Joseph and Zhang “Based on these mouse data, we see that the microrobots could potentially improve the use of antibiotics to kill bacteria and save more patients’ lives.”
The work is still at the proof-of-concept stage. The team plans to do more basic research to understand exactly how the microrobots interact with the immune system (免疫系统). Next steps also include studies to confirm the effectiveness of the microrobot treatment before testing it in larger animals and eventually, in humans. “We’re pushing the boundary further in the field of targeted drug delivery,” said Zhang.
1. How do microrobots work?| A．By doing targeted drug delivery. |
| B．By interacting with antibiotic-filled matter. |
| C．By producing algae cells in lungs. |
| D．By separating harmful cells from healthy ones. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Subjective. | C．Cautious. | D．Favorable. |
| A．They’ll inspire a new line of research. |
| B．They’ll help strengthen the immune system. |
| C．They’ll have a wider range of application. |
| D．They’ll be a further proof of their concept. |
| A．A scientific invention treating deadly cancers. |
| B．Tiny swimming robots helping treat pneumonia. |
| C．A major breakthrough made in antibiotic research. |
| D．Microrobots employed in the engineering field. |
4 . Jones Thando was a 16-year-old senior high school student, who had an idea for a new method of finding pancreatic cancer. When Jones was 15 years old, her aunt died of this kind of cancer, which
The way ahead seemed
Another great reward for Jone’s
| A．affected | B．challenged | C．disappointed | D．inspired |
| A．accidentally | B．extremely | C．originally | D．abnormally |
| A．painful | B．precious | C．standard | D．improper |
| A．Recognizing | B．Realizing | C．Hit | D．Warned |
| A．relieve | B．cure | C．treat | D．catch |
| A．awkward | B．smooth | C．tough | D．simple |
| A．even | B．ever | C．merely | D．rarely |
| A．declined | B．desired | C．regretted | D．afforded |
| A．absolutely | B．similarly | C．limitedly | D．endlessly |
| A．researchers | B．patients | C．followers | D．survivals |
| A．neglected | B．responded | C．guaranteed | D．contributed |
| A．access | B．introduction | C．application | D．movement |
| A．fright | B．persistence | C．ambition | D．responsibility |
| A．goal-setting | B．problem-solving | C．world-changing | D．heart-breaking |
| A．also | B．and | C．so | D．but |
| A．hardly | B．fluently | C．occasionally | D．eventually |
| A．All in all | B．First of all | C．After all | D．At all |
| A．ideas | B．dreams | C．personalities | D．advantages |
| A．contacts | B．doubts | C．encourages | D．reflects |
| A．stress | B．career | C．discovery | D．concentration |
5 . About 600,000 people die of heart attacks at home each year. And the survival rate (存活率) of out-of-hospital heart attacks is much lower than those that happen at the in-hospital setting.
Pumpstart, a program created by students at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) which is meant to teach hands-only CPR (心脏复苏术) to the general public, is effective in both teaching high school students a life-saving skill and providing medical students with a chance to take part in public health and medical education after several surveys.
High school students in the Boston area who joined in the Pumpstart program completed pre-/post surveys. The pre-surveys were carried out before they watched a 60-minute training session (培训课程) on hands-only CPR. And the post surveys were done after the training session. Medical students also completed surveys judging their comfort in learning CPR both before and after they took part in the program. The high school students reported huge improvements in CPR skills following their training from Pumpstart. And it was reported that the medical students had higher confidence levels regarding their abilities to answer questions about CPR and helping new medical students to better understand the training sessions after they joined in Pumpstart.
“Getting the general public to feel comfortable performing CPR is important to overall improved survival from heart attacks,” explained Anita Knopov, a fourth-year medical student at BUSM. “Using educational resources provided by the city medical center and offering training to inner-city high school students allow medical students to serve as both educators and experienced people in CPR within the community, while making high school students interested in the healthcare field (医疗领域). That’s what Pumpstart does.”
Knopov believes Pumpstart can serve as a model for other organizations and can have a long-term (长期的) public health influence as the bystander CPR continues to be one of the most useful factors in out-of-hospital (医院之外) heart attack survival. “Although Pumpstart is offered only in Boston, we hope that our work may stimulate the development of similar programs in other areas. And in that case we can use lots of new ‘Pumpstarts’ in other regions.”
1. What is the main purpose of Pumpstart?| A．To change people’s lifestyle. |
| B．To train students to be healthy |
| C．To improve CPR skills of the public. |
| D．To provide medical care for communities. |
| A．Pumpstart improves students self-confidence |
| B．Pumpstart performs CPR for people independently. |
| C．Pumpstart obviously reduces the risk of heart attacks |
| D．Pumpstart encourages students to work in the healthcare field |
| A．Pretty useful. | B．Widely popular |
| C．Partly confusing. | D．Fairly interesting |
| A．Check | B．Prevent |
| C．Encourage | D．Slow |
6 . Wu Ming, a young German born after 1995, is a big fan of Chinese culture. As he thought some diseases can’t be treated
Studying TCM also
Wu
Wu thinks there’s no big difference between China and Western countries. “
| A．immediately | B．gradually | C．thoroughly | D．consistently |
| A．depend on | B．dig into | C．look up | D．work out |
| A．created | B．enjoyed | C．advanced | D．acknowledged |
| A．overcame | B．seized | C．divided | D．shifted |
| A．raised | B．sorted | C．cooked | D．tasted |
| A．aspects | B．standards | C．themes | D．means |
| A．enriched | B．secured | C．expanded | D．changed |
| A．exposed | B．reduced | C．restricted | D．addicted |
| A．businesses | B．recreations | C．routines | D．tasks |
| A．balanced | B．wealthy | C．humble | D．efficient |
| A．employs | B．promotes | C．outlines | D．conveys |
| A．scanning | B．checking | C．exploring | D．comparing |
| A．concern | B．wish | C．demand | D．passion |
| A．Misunderstanding | B．Destruction | C．Stress | D．Failure |
| A．source | B．basis | C．bridge | D．tool |
7 . At Southmead Hospital in Bristol, researchers are experimenting with robots programmed to interact with patients for simple forms of physiotherapy (物理治疗). Another possible use might be basic bedside checks. Real applications are still some way off, but hospital leaders think this could help ease workforce pressure.
Everyone understands that people want more out of healthcare as they live longer. Hospitals have not enough workforce to meet those demands, and of course, robotics and technology can be taught to repeat unskilled tasks.
The hospital is working with Bristol Robotics Laboratory, looking at future care of patients in their own homes. This device can be controlled remotely to help with basic household tasks. Technology can clearly help those who need assistance at home, but might people feel they lose out from lack of human contact?
Professor Praminda Caleb-Solly at Bristol Robotics Laboratory said, “In no way are we looking to replace people, because nurses and doctors always think of what other people need and give them emotional support. The idea here is to improve the quality of care that can be provided. However, there are big questions over what that will mean for patients’ experiences and the impact on staff.”
And away from patients, there’s automation. Robots deliver most supplies around the hospital, including supplies to operating theatres and meals for the wards. They even have their own lifts. Because they do the heavy physical work, staff injuries have been reduced. Robot technology is also at work in the hospital drugstore. Orders for medicines are processed rapidly and made ready for clinical (临床的) teams. Pharmacists (药剂师) say it improves patient safety by eliminating (消除) human error.
Hugh Pym, BBC health editor, says that “robotic devices are thought to offer, potentially, major long-term benefits to hospitals. There’s great potential there.” They won’t necessarily offer cups of tea or even look like this. But the fact that hospital leaders are working with engineers on robotics shows there is a new vision for post-pandemic health and care.
1. What do we know about the robots programmed at Southmead Hospital?| A．They will be put to use in the near future. |
| B．They could control patients’ home at a distance. |
| C．They can help patients to communicate with doctors. |
| D．They may make up for the lack of staff in the hospital. |
| A．Robots will replace doctors in medical treatment. |
| B．Robots are favored by patients and medical staff. |
| C．Robots are less considerate than human medical staff. |
| D．Robots can be emotional with the help of technology. |
| A．The theory behind the robotic technology. |
| B．The advantages of using robots in hospitals. |
| C．The cooperation between robots and doctors. |
| D．The effect of automation on medical treatment. |
| A．Positive. | B．Negative. |
| C．Neutral. | D．Unclear. |
8 . People with liver(肝)failure may in future recover by being attached to dialysis(透析)equipment to clean their blood of poisonous substances. The idea is similar to kidney dialysis, when people with kidney failure regularly go to a clinic or hospital to have their blood cleaned. Now, a new technique has shown promise in a small clinical trial, where it boosted the recovery process for people with liver failure.
Liver failure can be triggered by infections, drug overdoses, or drinking too much alcohol. One of the liver's main functions is to remove harmful elements from the blood. In severe liver failure, there is a huge build-up of poisons, which can cause damage to other organs and death.
Many poisonous substances from food and drink are transported in the blood. Initial attempts to replace the liver's function have involved simple forms of dialysis, where the blood is passed through a filter containing clean albumin(白蛋白).
This treatment is on offer in certain hospitals globally, but some trials have failed to show it provides benefit. The problem is that people with liver failure make too little albumin and what they do make doesn't function properly, says Agarwal, a doctor from the Royal Free Hospital in London. "Whatever albumin is being produced is of low quality." So Agarwal and his colleagues developed a different approach, removing the poisonous albumin from the individual's blood and replacing it with an adding of fresh albumin.
The technique was tested in 30 people in intensive care with severe liver failure caused by an outburst of alcoholic cirrhosis. Half the group had three to five dialysis sessions, while the rest received conventional care. Ten out of the 15 people who got dialysis recovered after 10 days, compared with five out of the 15 who got the conventional care. The results were presented at the International Liver Congress, which was held virtually at the end of June.
The work is at an early stage, but the results are promising. "We are really desperate to find something to bridge to transplantation." says Tobias Bottler at the University of Freiburg, Germany, who wasn't involved in the trial.
1. What does the underlined word "it" in Paragraph 1 refer to?| A．The small trial | B．The new technique. |
| C．The dialysis equipment. | D．The poisonous substance |
| A．Traditional care is more effective than dialysis in treating liver failure. |
| B．Dialysis treatment is available in hospitals with its all trials successful. |
| C．It's hard for people with liver failure to make much high-quality albumin |
| D．Many poisonous substances from food and air are transported in the blood. |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Negative. |
| C．Positive | D．Suspicious. |
| A．Liver Dialysis Is One Step Closer |
| B．Approaches to Curing Liver Cancer |
| C．Attempts to Restore the Liver's Function |
| D．Liver Dialysis Replaces Transplantation |
It seems that people in western countries are becoming increasingly
I made an
10 . Is your doctor telling you the truth? Possibly not, according to a new survey in Health Affairs of nearly 1,900 doctors around the country.
The researchers found that 55% of the doctors said that in the last year they had been more positive about a patient s prognosis (预断) than his medical history. And 10% said they had told their patients something that wasn’t true. About a third of the doctors said they did not completely agree that they should disclose medical errors to their patients, and 40% said they didn’t feel the need to disclose financial ties to drug companies.
Really? The study’s lead author, Dr. Lisa Iezzoni, a medicine professor at Harvard Medical School and director of the Mongan Institute for Health Policy at Massachusetts General Hospital, was surprised to learn how dishonest her colleagues were. “Some of the numbers were larger than I expected they might be,” she says.
Why the white lies? In some cases, Iezzoni says it was for self-protection. Nearly 20% of the doctors admitted that they didn’t disclose a medical error to their patients because they were afraid of being punished for improper treatment. In other cases, it may have been for the patient’ s benefit. Some might spare an anxious patient from hearing about the slightly abnormal results of a lab test, for example, if it has no negative effect on the patient’s health.
“After all doctors are human too,” says Iezzoni. “They don’t want to upset their patients, they don’ t want their patients to look unhappy or burst into tears. But they also need to be professionals; so they need to tell themselves that if there is a difficult truth they need to tell their patients, they need to work out a way of communicating that effectively.”
That’s important for doctors to appreciate, because as well-intentioned as their lies may be, other studies consistently show that patients prefer the truth, and would rather hear unpleasant news than remain ignorant about an awful medical condition. Being fully informed is a way that patients can prepare for whatever might occur. Therefore, it is necessary for doctors to learn to express themselves.
1. About the new survey in Health Affairs, we can learn that ______.| A．40% of the doctors preferred to work in drug companies |
| B．about half of the doctors were unwilling to disclose medical errors |
| C．10% of the doctors admitted that they had lied to their patients |
| D．about 30% of the doctors were positive on predicting the patients’ disease |
| A．were trying to defend themselves | B．wanted to prove they were professionals |
| C．knew little about the patients’ situations | D．wanted the patients to spend more money |
| A．how doctors should communicate with their patients |
| B．how to build up trust between doctors and patients |
| C．how doctors’ feelings affect their patients |
| D．how to stop patients from complaining |
| A．report some medical errors | B．talk about the needs of patients |
| C．persuade doctors to improve skills | D．discus the doctor-patient relationship |
