Stretchable Electronics Used in Soft Wireless, Wearable Health Monitor

The soft and conformable monitor can display electrocardiogram (ECG), respiratory rate, heart rate, and motion activity data as much as 15 m to a portable recording device such as a tablet computer or smartphone. The electronics are mounted on a stretchable substrate and linked to gold, skin-like electrodes via printed connectors that can stretch with the medical film in which they are fixed.

“This health monitor has a key advantage for young children who are always moving, since the soft conformal device can accommodate that activity with a gentle integration onto the skin,” said  an assistant professor. “This is designed to meet the electronic health monitoring needs of people whose sensitive skin may be harmed by conventional monitors.”
  
The monitor has been tested on animal models as well as humans.

Since the device conforms to the skin, it avoids signal problems that can be generated by the motion of the standard metal-gel electrodes across the skin. The device can even acquire accurate signals from a person who is running, walking, or climbing stairs.

“When you put a conventional electrode on the chest, movement from sitting up or walking creates motion artifacts that are challenging to separate from the signals you want to measure,” he said. “Because our device is soft and conformal, it moves with the skin and provides information that cannot be seen with the motion artifacts of conventional sensors.”

On-going evaluation with a wireless health monitor could enhance the assessment of children and help clinicians identify trends sooner, potentially enabling intervention before a condition spreads, said  a pediatric cardiologist.

The generation of continuous data from the respiratory and cardiovascular systems could allow for the application of advanced diagnostics to detect changes in clinical status, response to therapies and implementation of early intervention. A device to literally follow every breath a child takes could allow for early recognition and intervention prior to a more severe presentation of a disease.

A Pediatric Cardiologist

When used in the home, a wearable monitor might sense variations that might not otherwise be obvious, he said. When the wireless device is used in clinical surroundings, children would not feel “tethered” to equipment. “I see this device as a significant change in pediatric health care” the Dr. added.

The monitor uses three gold electrodes fixed in the film that also comprises the electronic processing equipment. The total health monitor measures just three inches in diameter. Soon a more advanced version will measure just half that size. The wireless monitor is currently driven by a small rechargeable battery, but upcoming versions may substitute the battery with an external radio-frequency charging system.

The researchers  are concentrating on pediatric applications due to the need for ambulatory monitoring in children. However, they think that the health monitor could also be used for other patient groups, such as older adults who may also have sensitive skin. For adults, there would be extra benefits.

The monitor could be worn for multiple days, perhaps for as long as two weeks. The membrane is waterproof, so an adult could take a shower while wearing it. After use, the electronic components can be recycled.

An Assistant Professor.

Two versions of the monitor have been built. One is based on medical tape and engineered for short-term application in a hospital or other care facility, while the other uses a soft elastomer medical film permitted for use in wound care. The latter can stay on the skin for a longer period.

“The devices are completely dry and do not require a gel to pick up signals from the skin,” the Prof. explained. “There is nothing between the skin and the ultrathin sensor, so it is comfortable to wear.”
Since the monitor can be worn for extended periods of time, it can offer a long-term record of ECG data useful to understanding potential heart complications.

“We use deep learning to monitor the signals while comparing them to data from a larger group of patients,” the Prof. said. “If an abnormality is detected, it can be reported wirelessly through a smartphone or other connected device.”

The monitor’s circuitry is manufactured using thin-film, mesh-like patterns of copper that can flex with the soft substrate. The only part not flexible is the chips, but they are placed on the strain-isolated soft substrate rather than a traditional plastic circuit board.

Going forward, the researcher plans to decrease the size of the device and incorporate features to measure other health-connected factors such as blood oxygen, temperature, and blood pressure. A major breakthrough would be a clinical trial to assess performance against standard health monitors.
For the researcher, who is an expert in nano- and micro-engineering, the probability of seeing the device in clinical trials—and eventually used in children’s hospitals—is a strong incentive.

It will be a dream come true for me to see something we have developed be helpful to someone who is suffering. We all want to see developments in science and engineering translated into improved patient care.

 An Assistant Professor

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Stroke recovery treatment: new technology found

A new stretchable electronics has been found for stroke recovery treatment which has proven to be a game changer. A groundbreaking new wearable designed to be worn on the throat could have been developed in the field of stroke rehabilitation in the Northwestern University. The new technology’s sensor is the latest growing portfolio of stretchable electronics that are precise enough for use in advanced medical care and portable enough to be worn outside the hospital, even during extreme exercise.

The sensors stick directly to the skin, moving with the body and providing detailed health metrics including heart function, muscle activity, and quality of sleep. “Stretchable electronics allow us to see what is going on inside patients’ bodies at a level traditional wearables simply cannot achieve”, he said. “The key is to make them as integrated as possible with the human body.”

The new bandage-like throat sensor measured patients’ swallowing ability and patterns of speech.
The sensors aid in the diagnosis and treatment of aphasia, a communication disorder associated with stroke.

The tools that speech-language pathologists have traditionally used to monitor patients’ speech function – such as microphones – cannot distinguish between patients’ voices and ambient noise.
“Our sensors solve that problem by measuring vibrations of the vocal chords”, he said. “But they only work when worn directly on the throat, which is a very sensitive area of the skin. We developed novel materials for this sensor that bend and stretch with the body, minimizing discomfort to patients”.

A research hospital  collaborated with the scientist for the research, used the throat sensor in conjunction with electronic biosensors – also developed in his lab – on the legs, arms and chest to monitor stroke patients' recovery progress.

The intermodal system of sensors streamed data wirelessly to clinicians’ phones and computers, providing a quantitative, full-body picture of patients’ advanced physical, and physiological responses in real time.

“One of the biggest problems we face with stroke patients is that their gains tend to drop off when they leave the hospital”, said  a research scientist. “With the home monitoring enabled by these sensors, we can intervene at the right time, which could lead to better, faster recoveries for patients”.
Because the sensors are wireless, they eliminated barriers posed by traditional health monitoring devices in clinical settings.

Data from the sensors would be presented in a dashboard that is easy for both clinicians and patients to understand. It would send alerts when patients are under-performing on a certain metric and would allow them to set and track progress toward their goals.         
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/                              

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Stroke recovery treatment: new technology found

A new stretchable electronics has been found for stroke recovery treatment which has proven to be a game changer. A groundbreaking new wearable designed to be worn on the throat could have been developed in the field of stroke rehabilitation. The new technology’s sensor is the latest in Prof’s growing portfolio of stretchable electronics that are precise enough for use in advanced medical care and portable enough to be worn outside the hospital, even during extreme exercise.

Rogers’ sensors stick directly to the skin, moving with the body and providing detailed health metrics including heart function, muscle activity, and quality of sleep. “Stretchable electronics allow us to see what is going on inside patients’ bodies at a level traditional wearable simply cannot achieve”, the Prof. said. “The key is to make them as integrated as possible with the human body.”

The Prof’s new bandage-like throat sensor measured patients’ swallowing ability and patterns of speech.

The sensors aid in the diagnosis and treatment of aphasia, a communication disorder associated with stroke.

The tools that speech-language pathologists have traditionally used to monitor patients’ speech function – such as microphones – cannot distinguish between patients’ voices and ambient noise.

“Our sensors solve that problem by measuring vibrations of the vocal chords”, the Prof. said. “But they only work when worn directly on the throat, which is a very sensitive area of the skin. We developed novel materials for this sensor that bend and stretch with the body, minimizing discomfort to patients”.

A research hospital collaborated with scientists for the research, used the throat sensor in conjunction with electronic biosensors – also developed in the lab – on the legs, arms and chest to monitor stroke patients' recovery progress.

The intermodal system of sensors streamed data wirelessly to clinicians’ phones and computers, providing a quantitative, full-body picture of patients’ advanced physical, and physiological responses in real time.

“One of the biggest problems we face with stroke patients is that their gains tend to drop off when they leave the hospital”, said  a research scientist. “With the home monitoring enabled by these sensors, we can intervene at the right time, which could lead to better, faster recoveries for patients”.
Because the sensors are wireless, they eliminated barriers posed by traditional health monitoring devices in clinical settings.

Data from the sensors would be presented in a dashboard that is easy for both clinicians and patients to understand. It would send alerts when patients are under-performing on a certain metric and would allow them to set and track progress toward their goals.

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-                      
HTTP:GSEASYRECIPES.BLOGSPOT.COM/

FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG-                                                     

HTTP://KNEE REPLACEMENT-STICK CLUB.BLOGSPOT.COM/
FOR CROCHET DESIGNS
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