Traditionally, if the heart needs repairing, doctors use invasive stitches and staples, although new advances in genetic engineering may help. However, a team of research scientists at Harvard have created a medical superglue that is strong enough to hold heart tissue together.

 

The use of stitches and staples to repair heart damage comes with major problems. Not only is it difficult to create a watertight seal with both, but they also can damage delicate heart tissue. They don’t work well in wet environments and are often affected by the pressure of the heart as it beats (it might be delicate, but it’s also powerful). Sometimes, depending on the material used, the stitches and staples don’t react well when exposed to blood, which is obviously a huge problem.