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WASHINGTON, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) – US researchers have developed a biodegradable and implantable wireless device that could speed up nerve regeneration and improve healing of a damaged nerve, the first example of bioelectronic medicine.
The study published Monday in the journal Nature Medicine reported the device, the size of a coin and a thick sheet of paper, which delivers regular electrical impulses to the damaged peripheral nerves of rats after a process surgical repair.
According to the study, the wireless device could work for two weeks before being naturally absorbed by the body, thus accelerating the regrowth of the nerves in the legs and improving the ultimate recovery of muscle strength and control.
Car accidents and sports injuries can hurt the peripheral nerves, leaving people with numbness, tingling and weakness, and recovery can take months.
"We know that electrical stimulation during the operation is helpful, but once the operation is complete, the intervention window is closed," said lead co-author Wilson Ray, an associate professor of neurosurgery at the University of Washington.
"With this device we have shown that programmed electrical stimulation can further improve nerve recovery," Ray said.
"These engineering systems provide active therapeutic function in a programmable dosage format, and then naturally disappear into the body, leaving no trace," said John Rogers of Northwestern University, a pioneer in bio-integrated technologies and co-author. principal of the study.
They designed and developed a thin and flexible device that surrounds an injured nerve and delivers electrical impulses at specific times for days before the device degrades harmlessly into the body.
According to the study, the device is powered and controlled wirelessly by a transmitter located on the outside of the body, which looks a lot like a mobile phone charging mat.
The researchers then studied the bioelectronic device in rats with sciatic nerve lesions. This nerve sends signals up and down the legs and controls the hamstrings and muscles of the lower legs and feet.
They used the device to provide rats with one hour of electrical stimulation for one, three, or six days, or even no electrical stimulation, and then monitored their recovery for the next ten weeks.
They discovered that any electrical stimulation was better than ever to help rats regain muscle mass and strength.
He also showed that the higher the number of days of electrical stimulation received by the rats, the more quickly and completely they found nerve signaling and muscle strength, and no undesirable biological effects were observed.
By varying the composition and thickness of the device's materials, they can control the precise number of days during which it remains functional before being absorbed by the body. Now, new versions of the device can provide electrical impulses for weeks before degrading.
"It's not a therapeutic option yet, because it has not been tested on patients, but I'm excited about this option because it's a new approach to treating peripheral nerve damage, and it could offer a solution. where he does not today in the clinical field, "Ray said.
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