Microscopic robots may be ready to cure sinus infections in 10 years

Swarms of tiny robots, each no larger than a speck of dust, could be deployed to cure stubborn sinus infections before being blown out through the nose into a tissue, researchers have claimed.

- Robert Booth

The micro-robots are a fraction of the width of a human hair and have been inserted successfully into animal sinuses in pre-clinical trials by researchers at universities in China and Hong Kong.

Swarms are guided to their target by electromagnetism. They can then be made to heat up and catalyse chemical reactions to wipe out bacterial infections. There are hopes the targeted technology could eventually reduce reliance on antibiotics and other generalised medicines.

The tiny devices are part of the expanding field of micro- and nano-robots for use in medicine. They have also been developed to deliver drugs and to remove bacteria from medical implants.