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Scientists at Tufts University have developed a low-cost "smart" dressing that can monitor wounds and automatically deliver antibiotics to the wound site. Measuring less than 3 mm in thickness, the prototype bandage contains the latest flexible electronic components, including built-in sensors that measure pH and temperature. The readings are then transmitted to an onboard microprocessor that badyzes the data and, in case of sign of infection, triggers the release of antibiotics.
Led by Sameer Sonkusale, Ph.D., professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the School of Engineering at Tufts University, the team describes the bandage in the newspaper Small . "The smart bandage we created, with pH and temperature sensors and the delivery of antibiotic drugs, is really a prototype for a wide range of possibilities," says Professor Sameer. The article published by the researchers called "Smart Bandage for the Monitoring and Treatment of Chronic Wounds".
Non-healing chronic skin wounds resulting from trauma such as burns or diseases such as diabetes affect more than 25 million people. The United States and, according to one report, translate into estimated health insurance costs of $ 28 billion each year. Usually treated at home or outpatient, chronic wounds are prone to infection and are the leading cause of non-traumatic limb amputations worldwide, the authors write.
The administration of a timely treatment can help heal but, as the researchers point out, "this approach requires real-time monitoring of the wound environment with an administration closed-loop prescription drugs. the wounds are elderly and non-ambulatory, and would also have trouble self-administering a treatment.
The team has now taken advantage of the latest electronic components to develop a new type of bandage that can not only monitor the wound environment in real time. but also administer drugs in response to key signals from the wound. "We have been able to take a new approach to bandages through the emergence of flexible electronics," says Professor Sonkusale. "In fact, flexible electronics has made possible many wearable medical devices, but the bandages have changed little since the early days of medicine. We are simply applying modern technology to an ancient art in the hope of making it easier." improve the results of an intractable problem. "
The prototype bandage comprises heating elements and a drug-resistant heat-resistant gel which can be heated to release its site from the wound The release of the drug is triggered by a microprocessor, also carried in the dressing, which badyzes the data pH and Temperature Transmitted by Integrated and Flexible Sensors as Measures of Potential Infection and Inflammation.
pH, for example, is a key parameter for the monitoring of the patient. Wounds that heal normally usually have a pH of 5.5 to 6.5, but the pH can increase when wounds are infected.Also, temperature changes in and around the wound environment can indicate when there is an inflammation.
The complete unit is attached to a transparent medical band. The researchers have a component that keeps costs down, and means everything except the microprocessor is disposable. And while the current prototype incorporates sensors that measure pH and temperature, the team has also developed flexible sensors to measure oxygenation, and is considering the use of biosensors for biomarker detection. specific. "One can imagine integrating other detection components, drugs, and growth factors that treat different conditions in response to different scarring markers," notes Professor Sonkusale.
The team evaluated the bandage under in vitro conditions. how to determine how it can help chronic wounds heal, compared to traditional bandage and wound care products. "This flexible and smart dressing has the potential to have a significant impact on the treatment of chronic wounds," the authors conclude.
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