You’ve seen instances of quadruple amputees, people losing their lower half and instestines, etc. After playing a bit of Deus Ex I started wondering exactly how much of a person needs to exist for them to survive (not talking quality of life, but just enough to communicate intelligently). How far could you do it with only natural parts and then how far could you go with artificial parts too?
Communication only needs the brain nowadays, neuralink is shit but there are options for similar brain-machine interface that are workable for paralyzed people.
Survival is harder. Ecmo, parenteral nutrition, and dialysis are organ supplements not replacements. Lacking lungs, GI, or kidneys will kill you. Dialysis supplements kidney function. Ecmo supplements lungs that are reduced capability. Parenteral nutrition supplements reduced GI function. There are mechanical hearts/assitive devices one dude had a mech heart one for years but you still need blood pumping. The liver has no assitive device you die in 24h without.
I think the mech hearts typically tend to lead to issues after a while. We’re probably not quite there yet, so I’ve heard. (Not that I have any expert knowledge, at all.)
Yeah, as with most implants there are issues with biofilm/plaques and immunity. They are also not responsive to loading so don’t allow exercise, affect vasculature weirdly etc.