New device harvests heart’s energy to power life-saving implants

Millions of people rely on pacemakers, defibrillators and other life-saving implantable devices powered by batteries that need to be replaced every five to 10 years. 

The same modules could potentially be used as sensors to enable data collection for real-time monitoring of patients, researchers said.

Novel pacemakers can be powered with light.

Smartphone-sized device to monitor your pacemaker at home

Soon, battery-free pacemakers powered by your heart

Scientists have developed a dime-sized device to capture and convert the kinetic energy of the heart into electricity to power a wide-range of life-saving implantable devices such as pacemakers. The heart’s motion is so powerful that it can recharge devices that save our lives, said researchers.

Millions of people rely on pacemakers, defibrillators and other live-saving implantable devices powered by batteries that need to be replaced every five to 10 years, they said. Those replacements require surgery which can be costly and create the possibility of complications and infections, according to the study published in the journal.

“We are trying to solve the ultimate problem for any implantable biomedical device,” said a researcher.

“Of equal importance is that the device not interfere with the body’s function,” said  a research associate. “We knew it had to be bio-compatible, lightweight, flexible, and low profile, so it not only fits into the current pacemaker structure but is also scalable for future multi-functionality,” he said.

The team proposes modifying pacemakers to harness the kinetic energy of the lead wire that is attached to the heart, converting it into electricity to continually charge the batteries. The added material is a type of thin polymer piezoelectric film called “PVDF” and, when designed with porous structures — either an array of small buckle beams or a flexible cantilever — it can convert even small mechanical motion to electricity.

“We have completed the first round of animal studies with great results which will be published soon,” he said. “There is already a lot of expressed interest from the major medical technology companies,” said  one of the study’s authors.

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Implantable device using light to treat bladder problems developed

A team of neuroscientists and engineers has developed a soft, implantable device that can detect over-activity in the bladder and then use light from tiny, bio-integrated LEDs to tamp down the urge to urinate.

In a minor surgical procedure, the researchers implant a soft, stretchy belt-like device around the bladder. The researchers also inject proteins called opsins into the animals' bladders. The opsins are carried by a virus that binds to nerve cells in the bladder, making those cells sensitive to light signals. This allows the researchers to use optogenetics, the use of light to control cell behavior in living tissue, to activate those cells.

Using blue-tooth communication to signal an external hand-held device, the scientists can read information in real time; and using a simple algorithm, they detect when the bladder is full, when the animal has emptied its bladder, and when bladder emptying is occurring too frequently.

"When the bladder is emptying too often, the external device sends a signal that activates micro-LEDs on the bladder band device, and the lights then shine on sensory neurons in the bladder. This reduces the activity of the sensory neurons and restores normal bladder function," said  a professor of anesthesiology  and one of the study's senior investigators.

The researchers believe a similar strategy could work in people. They expect to test similar devices in larger animals. They also believe the strategy could be used in other parts of the body, say treating chronic pain, or using light to stimulate cells in the pancreas to secrete insulin.

But, one hurdle involves the viruses used to get light-sensitive proteins to bind to cells in organs.

"We don't yet know whether we can achieve stable expression of the opsins using the viral approach and, more importantly, whether this will be safe over the long term," the researcher said.

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This tiny implantable device may help fight obesity

Scientists have developed a battery-free, easily implantable device that fools the brain into thinking that the stomach is full after just a few nibbles of food — an advance that could help combat the obesity epidemic. In laboratory testing, the devices developed by researchers  helped rats shed almost 40 per cent of their body weight. More than 700 million adults and children worldwide are obese, say researchers who dubbed the growing weight-related health problems a “rising pandemic.” The battery-free, easily implantable weight-loss devices could offer a promising new weapon for battling the bulge, according to the study. Measuring less than one centimetre across, the tiny devices — which are safe for use in the body and implantable via a minimally invasive procedure — generate gentle electric pulses from the stomach’s natural churning motions and deliver them to the vagus nerve, which links the brain and the stomach. That gentle stimulation dupes the brain into thinking that the stomach is full after only a few nibbles of food. “The pulses correlate with the stomach’s motions, enhancing a natural response to help control food intake,” said a researcher. Unlike gastric bypass, which permanently alters the capacity of the stomach, the effects of the new devices also are reversible. When researchers removed the devices after 12 weeks, the study’s rats resumed their normal eating patterns and weight bounced right back on. The device has several advantages over an existing unit that stimulates the vagus nerve for weight loss. That existing unit, “Maestro,” approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2015, administers high-frequency zaps to the vagus nerve to shut down all communication between the brain and stomach. It requires a complicated control unit and bulky batteries which frequently must be recharged. That ongoing maintenance can be a big barrier to use, said  a surgery professor  “One potential advantage of the new device over existing vagus nerve stimulators is that it does not require external battery charging, which is a significant advantage when you consider the inconvenience that patients experience when having to charge a battery multiple times a week for an hour or so,” said the researcher. The device contains no batteries, no electronics, and no complicated wiring. It relies instead on the undulations of the stomach walls to power its internal generators. That means the device only stimulates the vagus nerve when the stomach moves. “It’s automatically responsive to our body function, producing stimulation when needed,” said the researcher. THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                                                                  PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/                                                                                                                                                                             FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG-                                                     https:// kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com/                                                                                        FOR CROCHET DESIGNS                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com

Implantable Micropacemaker could prevent miscarriage and premature birth in babies!

Researchers have developed an implantable micro-pacemaker which can be used in a fetus with a complete heart block.

The new invention can also prevent miscarriage and premature birth for babies, affected with  congenital complete heartblock.

The researchers have already done per-clinical testing and optimization and they anticipate the first human use of the device in the near future. According to the researchers, the micro-pacemaker is small enough to reside entirely in the fetus.

Congenital heartblock is a defect of the heart's electrical system that originates in the developing fetus, greatly slowing the rate of the heart and impacting its ability to pump blood.

 

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Novel, implantable device 'could slow, reverse heart failure'

Around 50% of people who develop heart failure die within 5 years of diagnosis. But could a novel, implantable heart device change this? In a clinical trial, the C-Pulse - a cuff that wraps around the aorta and pumps blood from the heart around the body - has proved effective in reversing heart failure, even in some patients with severe cases.

The C-Pulse device - consisting of a cuff that wraps around the aorta and helps pump blood from the heart around the body - could slow or reverse heart failure, according to researchers.

The research team, led by Dr. William Abraham of The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, publish their findings in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC) Heart Failure.

  Heart failure occurs when the heart is unable to pump enough blood and oxygen around the body to support other organs. Around 5.1 million people in the US have the condition.

There is no cure for heart failure, although there are medications to help manage symptoms. But Dr. Abraham notes such treatments are not always effective. "The optimal drug therapies we have today often aren't enough to manage this disease for some patients," he says, "so we are always looking for new types of therapies."

For their study, Dr. Abraham and his team implanted the C-Pulse device in 20 patients with either functional class III or ambulatory functional class IV heart failure, as defined by the New York Heart Association.

The device, developed by Sunshine Heart Inc., is an extra-aortic counterpulsation system. It consists of a cuff that is placed around the patient's aorta - the largest artery in the body - and is outside of the patient's bloodstream. The cuff is attached to a small balloon that inflates and deflates in sync with the patient's heartbeat. This pumps blood through the aorta and around the body.
 
According to the Sunshine Heart website, the device is designed to get more oxygen to the heart muscle, reduce the workload of the left ventricle in the heart, and increase blood flow from the heart.
A wire runs from the device through the abdomen to an external power pack called a "driver," which the patient wears. The driver can be battery powered or plugged in, and it can be disconnected temporarily to allow the patient to shower, for example, or carry out other short tasks where the pack may be inconvenient.

The C-Pulse can be implanted within 1 hour via a mini-thoracotomy (a small incision through the ribs) and a mini-sternotomy (a small incision through the sternum) or via a complete sternotomy.

C-Pulse 'effectively reversed heart failure' for some patients

The patients in the study were assessed 6 months and 1 year after device implantation. The team says that 16 of the 20 patients showed significant improvements in symptoms at both points in time.
Dr. Abraham says that three of the patients had mild or no symptoms of heart failure 1 year after implantation. "They went from class III or IV down to a functional class I, effectively reversing their heart failure," he adds.
 
The researchers also found that the patients were able to walk an average of 100 feet further, and the average quality of life score among patients improved by almost 30 points. "Drug and device therapies that are currently available for heart failure improve that same quality of life score by only five or 10 points," Dr. Abraham explains. "So, this is truly a significant improvement."
 
The researchers note that because the device is outside of the patient's bloodstream, none of them were hospitalized for stroke  thrombosis, sepsis or bleeding, which they say can be common among patients using left ventricular assist devices.

They point out, however, that a common side effect - occurring among 8 of the 20 patients - was infection of the device exit site. In future trials, the team notes that this side effect should be reduced with stricter guidelines for management of the exit site and better wound care and antibiotic therapy.

Medical News Today recently reported on the development of a wearable skin-like device that researchers say can monitor cardiovascular and skin health 24 hours a day.

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Shape-changing implantable transistors grip living tissue

 These implantable shape changing transistors can grip nerves and tissues, changing shape within the body, while still maintaining their electronic properties.


A multinational group of scientists has developed implantable shape-changing transistors that can grip nerves, blood vessels and tissues. According to the researchers, these soft electronic devices can change shape within the body, while still maintaining their electronic properties, allowing them to be used in a variety of applications and treatments.

The result of a collaboration between scientists at the University of Tokyo, Japan and The University of Texas, Dallas, the soft transistors are being designed to change shape in ways that are more biologically compatible.

"Scientists and physicians have been trying to put electronics in the body for a while now, but one of the problems is that the stiffness of common electronics is not compatible with biological tissue," says Jonathan Reeder, the study's lead author. "You need the device to be stiff at room temperature so the surgeon can implant the device, but soft and flexible enough to wrap around 3D objects so the body can behave exactly as it would without the device."

To get the device to behave accordingly, the group integrated the electronics into softening and shape-changing polymer material and also added layers of flexible electronic foils. In their normal state outside the body, the transistors are rigid. Once implanted, they become soft when heated and can flex to grip living tissue.

"We used a new technique in our field to essentially laminate and cure the shape memory polymers on top of the transistors," said the team's Dr. Walter Voit. "In our device design, we are getting closer to the size and stiffness of precision biologic structures, but have a long way to go to match nature’s amazing complexity, function and organization.”

In tests conducted in rats, the scientists heated the implanted transistors to get them to grip a cylinder 2.25 mm (0.08 in) in diameter. The device maintained its electronic properties, the researchers reported, even after it had wrapped itself around tissue.

The group's overall goal is to engineer shape changing electronic devices whose presence within the body is less intrusive as an alternative to flexible plastic-based electronic devices that continue to hold on to their shape and stiffness. Moving forward, the researchers plan to equip these soft electronics with more sensors and shrink the device's size to enable it to flex around even smaller objects.

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