World's First Robotic Period Created To Study Drug Effects By Scientists

Doctors prescribe medicines and treatments around the world without a concrete understanding of the potentially adverse side effects on women and their menstrual cycles. But a team of scientists in Chicago may have created a solution to understanding how certain drugs can impact the female period.

They created a small device that replicates the monthly process. It features a 3D model of the entire reproductive tract.

It’s the first mechanical period in the world and could mark one of the largest milestones. It was specifically created to target pregnant women and those looking to conceive a child, National Geographic reported Tuesday. The device, called EVATAR, will be used to determine the effects of various prescription drugs on the female uterus, cervix, vagina and other reproductive organs, researchers noted in their report published this week in Nature Communications.

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"It's really revolutionary technology," Teresa Woodruff, professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Northwestern University and co-author of the study, told National Geographic. "I think the future of women's health is bright."

Researchers strayed from including women in clinical trials for prescription drugs throughout history, reportedly believing medicine would have the same impact on humans regardless of sex.

It wasn't until several drugs, including thalidomide, were found to cause illness in women and complications with pregnancies that the need for more tailored treatments based on gender became a universal understanding across the scientific community.

A women's menstrual cycle is fundamental to the health of their entire body and is capable of causing major fluctuations to various aspects of one’s health, Marianne Legato, the head of the Foundation for Gender-Specific Medicine, told National Geographic.

"I think we’re in a new era of investigation," Legato said. "Even the composition of saliva is different at the peak of the cycle, so these hormonal fluctuations are an important factor not only in normal function, but can be really isolated as specific targets for new drug developments."