Speeding healing.
New Wireless Smart Bandage Accelerates Chronic Wound Healing By Adrianna Nine on November 28, 2022 at 10:03 am in ExtremeTech
Chronic wounds are an under-acknowledged medical concern. At any given time, more than 600,000 Americans are thought to experience physiologically-stunted wounds that won’t heal. Chronic wounds aren’t just inconvenient and painful; they also rack up individual healthcare costs and prevent people from engaging in certain activities, resulting in a decreased quality of life.
Thanks to new research, this might not always be the case. A team of scientists at Stanford University has developed a wireless “smart bandage” that simultaneously monitors wound repair and helps to speed up healing. The bandage could shorten the time people suffer from chronic wounds while mitigating the physical damage and discomfort caused by conventional healing methods.
In a study published last week in Nature Biotechnology, the scientists describe a flexible, closed-loop device that seals wounds while transmitting valuable biodata to an individual’s smartphone. Hydrogel makes up the bandage’s base: While conventional bandages tug and tear at the skin when they’re pulled away, hydrogel allows the smart bandage to attach securely without causing secondary damage during removal. On top of the hydrogel sits the electronic layer responsible for wound observation and healing. At just 100 microns thick, this layer contains a microcontroller unit (MCU), electrical stimulator, radio antenna, memory, and a series of biosensors. .. '
