Inside the OEM: Stryker Thrives Amid Global Headwinds

This article examines how Stryker is executing its strategies in a complex and evolving macroeconomic environment, balancing the pressures of inflation, supply chain constraints, and global competition while driving operational discipline, expanding its differentiated robotics portfolio, launching new trauma systems, and leveraging tuck-in acquisitions.

Patient-Centric Design and Collaboration in Drug-Delivery Devices

Across ailments, the burden of self-administered care is growing, and with it, the importance of designing drug-delivery systems designed with the patient experience at their core. Patient-centric design goes beyond usability metrics and checklists. It’s about building trust, reducing friction and enabling people to manage their health with confidence and dignity. Read on to learn more.

Fitting More Functionality Into Increasingly Smaller, Smarter Devices: Heterogeneous Integration

Engineering and manufacturing complex devices requires heterogeneous integration; the process of combining multiple, different parts that together have the functionality required that gather process and communicate the important information. Read on to learn more.

From The Editor: Australia’s Medtech Investment Signals Global Shift and Opportunity for U.S. Partners

Australia is entering the global medical technology arena with a strategic investment package totaling $65.5 million, aimed at accelerating R&D, manufacturing, and commercialization. Backed by the Australian government, the move signals a deepening commitment to innovation-driven self-reliance — and opens the door to new global partnerships, including with U.S. medical device firms. Read on to learn what this means.

Leadless Pacemaker Prevents Invasive Surgeries

Researchers have created a groundbreaking prototype for a new kind of leadless pacemaker designed for both children and adults. The innovative micropacemaker would be the first fully leadless system to be placed in the pericardial space surrounding the heart. Read on to learn more.

Surgical Microscope Uses Tiny Cameras

To meet the need for better 3D imaging that works during live surgery, researchers recently developed a new kind of surgical microscope called the Fourier light-field multiview stereoscope, known as FiLM-Scope. Read on to learn more.

Smart Capsule Designed to Study GI Tract

Engineers have developed a smart capsule called PillTrek that can measure pH, temperature, and a variety of different biomarkers. It incorporates simple, inexpensive sensors into a miniature wireless electrochemical workstation that relies on low-power electronics. Read on to learn more.

Wristband All-in-One Monitor for Diabetes, Cardio Care

A wearable wristband could significantly improve diabetes management by continuously tracking not only glucose but also other chemical and cardiovascular signals that influence disease progression and overall health. Read on to learn more.

Soft Brainstem Implant Delivers High-Resolution Hearing

Researchers have developed a soft, thin-film auditory brainstem implant. The device uses micrometer-scale platinum electrodes embedded in silicone, forming a pliable array just a fraction of a millimeter thick. This novel approach enables better tissue contact, potentially preventing off-target nerve activation and reducing side effects. Read on to learn more.

Toothbrush-Shaped Ultrasound Allows for Gum Monitoring

A toothbrush-shaped ultrasound transducer can provide a less invasive screening for gum disease. In proof-of-concept demonstrations on animal tissues, the device produced measurements similar to those of a manual probe. Read on to learn more.

Researchers Develop Self-Illuminating Biosensor

Engineers have harnessed quantum physics to detect the presence of biomolecules without the need for an external light source, overcoming a significant obstacle to the use of optical biosensors in healthcare. Read on to learn more.

Laser Welding for Polymer Tubing: A New Solution for Adhesive- and Additive-Free Joining

Engineers at EWI have developed a new laser-based welding technique that enables the clean, reliable joining of clear-to-clear polymer tubing without the need for adhesives, solvents, colorants, or any chemical surface treatment. Read on to learn more.

Elevating Modern Drug-Delivery Devices with Advanced Polymers

In addressing the complex demands of drug-device integration, medical-grade thermoplastic polyurethanes provide a rare trifecta of tunable mechanics, chemical inertness and proven biocompatibility. While this polymer class is historically underutilized in drug delivery compared to more common materials like ethylene-vinyl acetate, it is increasingly favored in specialty product design for both extended release and implantable combination devices. Read on to learn more.

CO-TENG: An Origami-Inspired Self-Powering Sensor for Smart Wearables

Sensors are used everywhere. But traditional sensors often rely on rigid components and batteries, limiting their applications in soft systems. To address this, researchers have developed a smarter alternative. Using a paper-folding technique in combination with a triboelectric nanogenerator, they created a novel energy-harvesting sensor with promising potential for next-gen soft devices. Read on to learn more.

Handheld Device Could Transform Heart Disease Screening

Researchers from the University of Cambridge have developed a handheld device that could potentially replace stethoscopes as a tool for detecting certain types of heart disease. The device can also be used over clothing, making it more comfortable for patients — especially women — during routine check-ups or community heart health screening programs.

DNA-Inspired Design for Stronger, Flexible Sensors for Wearables

A fiber sensor inspired by the shape of DNA, developed by researchers at Shinshu University, introduces a new design for more durable, flexible fiber sensors in wearables. Read on to learn more.

Soft Robot Modules for New Haptic Interactions

EPFL researchers have developed a customizable soft robotic system that uses compressed air to produce shape changes, vibrations, and other haptic, or tactile, feedback in a variety of configurations. The device holds significant promise for applications in virtual reality, physical therapy, and rehabilitation. Read on to learn more.

Tiny Microlaser Sensors Offer Supercharged Biosensing

Researchers have developed a 3D microprinted sensor for highly sensitive on-chip biosensing. The sensor, which is based on a polymer whispering-gallerymode microlaser, opens new opportunities for developing high-performance, cost-effective lab-on-a-chip devices for early disease diagnosis. Read on to learn more.

New Products and Services

See the new products and services, including Dickson's mapping suite designed to streamline the identification of critical hot and cold zones and the analysis of temperature and humidity trends; Littelfuse's series of sealed tactile switches for surface-mount technology; Mahr Inc.'s height gage designed for ease of use and efficiency in production environments; and more.

Product Focus: Tubing

See where the product focus is this month: Tubing, including TekniPlex Healthcare's PTA/PTCA balloon catheter tubing solutions; Kent Elastomer Products' biopharmaceutical tubing that can replace thermoplastic elastomers and is designed to reduce emissions related to single-use tubing by as much as 50 percent; cut-to-length and slit peelable heat shrink tubing from Junkosha; and more.

AI Is in the Room — But Will It Bring Your Innovations to Market Quicker?

Artificial intelligence is emerging as a tool to balance challenges and facilitate the goal of bringing new innovations to market faster. And while AI undoubtedly has the potential to play a transformative role in medical device R&D, it must be approached with caution and utilized in a supportive capacity. Read on to learn more.

PHOx: An Innovative, Safer Polymer for Implantable Medical Devices

A team from the GIGA (Cardiology Laboratory) and the CESAM (Centre de recherche sur les macromolécules – CERM) at the University of Liège has developed PHOx, a thermoplastic elastomer without isocyanate PU (NIPU), which is therefore less toxic to produce and much better tolerated by the human body. Read on to learn more.

The Evolving Role of Robotics in Healthcare

Listen to these podcasts to learn how the role of robotics in healthcare has evolved and will continue to evolve.

Videos of the Month

See the videos of the month, including one on the “Robot Eyes” project; one on how researchers have found an unusual ally in the quest to make cancer diagnosis faster, more accurate, and more accessible worldwide: the Morpho butterfly; one on advances in AI and biocomputational models aiming to revolutionize the drug development process; and more.

Product of the Month

See the product of the month: MethodSense's Elsa & AI Resource Center at MethodSense.com. Read on to learn more about it.

Nelson Labs Expands Laboratory Capacity and Services in Germany

Nelson Labs, a provider of microbiological testing, analytical chemistry testing, and advisory services, has expanded its state-of-the-art laboratory space at its Wiesbaden,...

Privacy and Data Security in the Era of Medical Wearables

As we continue to explore the impact of wearables on healthcare, this episode focuses on privacy and data security in the era of medical wearables. Wearables are collecting vast...

Electrochemical Sensors Enable Inexpensive Disposable Diagnostics

Using an inexpensive electrode coated with DNA, researchers have designed disposable diagnostics that could be adapted to detect a variety of diseases, including cancer or...

Creating Wearables for Preventative Healthcare

Wearables detect early signs of health issues, paving the way for transforming preventative healthcare.

Trelleborg Expands European Medical Device and LifeScience Manufacturing

Trelleborg Medical Solutions has opened 43,055 sq ft (4,000 sq m) of manufacturing space in Hal-Far, Malta, helping medical device and life science customers bring...

AI Model Can Predict Cardiac Arrest Better than Doctors

A new AI model is much better than doctors at identifying patients likely to experience cardiac arrest. The linchpin is the system's ability to analyze long-underused heart imaging, alongside a full spectrum of medical records, to reveal previously hidden information about a patient's heart health.

Drug-Delivery System Tackles Lupus

A new system sends medication directly to the spleen where certain immune cells cause the disease known as lupus, or Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

Painless Diabetes Care: Smarter Drug Delivery

A wearable technology enables real-time, noninvasive tracking and optimized treatment for diabetic patients. It enables precise drug dosing through continuous, real-time monitoring of disease...

Zinc Detected in Clogged Syringes

Researchers have found that, in rare cases, zinc from the needle shield can leach into the drug solution to be injected and possibly contribute to syringe clogging. They were asked by the pharmaceutical...

Microrobots Navigate Complex Biological Environments

Fabricated with a gel side for carrying drugs and a magnetic side for steering, researchers have developed microrobots that can navigate complex biological environments like intestines....

Precision Drug Delivery with Magnetic Steering, Light-Triggered Release

Researchers have demonstrated that microscopic drug-delivery containers can be magnetically steered to their targets, advancing the development of precision medicine...

How Digital Twins Could Lead to Better GI Function

Kennesaw State University’s Lei Shi is leading a research project that could alter how GI disorders are diagnosed and treated using virtual replicas of a human stomach.

Magnetoelastic Smart Pen May Help Diagnose Parkinson’s

A smart, self-powered magnetoelastic pen could help detect early signs of Parkinson’s by analyzing a person’s handwriting. The highly sensitive diagnostic pen features a soft,...

Balancing Miniaturization, Power, and Compliance in Sensor Design

In this Q&A with Medical Design Briefs, Michael Klitzke, principal system architect at TE Connectivity, discusses how advances in sensor miniaturization, packaging,...

Osaka Prefecture Advances Regenerative Medicine with Future Medical Information Dissemination Project

Osaka Prefecture is moving forward with a large-scale initiative to accelerate regenerative medicine and drug discovery through...

Regulatory

What consumer technology device became the first FDA-approved over-the-counter (OTC) assistive hearing device for adults with mild to moderate hearing loss?