Tech Briefs

Streamlining Medtech Manufacturing with Effective Communication

Manufacturing engineers tend to focus on new machinery and ways to maximize production lines. Improving communication can also increase efficiency and reduce costly and dangerous mistakes. Good communication becomes more critical as the medical device manufacturing industry grows increasingly complex with the addition of robotics and automation. Read on to learn more.

Proof of Life: The Rapid Evolution of Biosensors for Fitness, Health, and Wellness

While smartwatches and fitness trackers have paved the way, upcoming innovations in hearables (earbuds that monitor health), augmented reality glasses, smart patches and smart clothing will push the boundaries of what biosensors can do. As demand for these devices increases, the focus will shift to making them more energy-efficient, secure, and even more embedded in daily life. Read on to learn more.

Soft, Bioelectronic Sensor Implant Monitors Brain

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine and New York’s Columbia University have embedded transistors in a soft, conformable material to create a biocompatible sensor implant that monitors neurological functions through successive phases of a patient’s development. Read on to learn more.

Multifunctional Biomedical Robot for Interventional Diagnosis and Treatment

Researchers have successfully developed what they believe is the world’s smallest multifunctional biomedical robots. Capable of imaging, high-precision motion, and multifunctional operations like sampling, drug delivery, and laser ablation, the robot offers competitive imaging performance and a tenfold improvement in obstacle detection. Read on to learn more.

Bioprinting Method Replicates Heart Tissues

Researchers at University of Galway have developed a way of bioprinting tissues that change shape as a result of cell-generated forces, in the same way that it happens in biological tissues during organ development. The breakthrough science focused on replicating heart tissues, bringing research closer to generating functional, bioprinted organs. Read on to learn more.

Diagnostic Kit Provides Early Diagnosis of Bladder Cancer

A research team led by Dr. Youngdo Jeong of the Center for Advanced Biomolecular Recognition the Korea Institute of Science and Technology has developed a urine-based diagnostic kit for bladder cancer that can be conveniently used at home. This kit can accurately detect bladder cancer biomarkers without any preprocessing of urine samples. Read on to learn more.

Smart Textile Senses Light, Pressure, Smell, and Even Taste

Researchers have developed a multifunctional sensor based on semiconductor fibers that emulates the five human senses. The technology developed in the study is expected to be utilized in fields such as wearables, Internet of Things (IoT), electronic devices, and soft robotics. Read on to learn more.

Laser-Made, Ultra-Thin Material Enables Precise, Self-Powered Tracking of Healing Wounds

A major challenge in self-powered wearable sensors for healthcare monitoring is distinguishing different signals when they occur at the same time. Researchers from Penn State and China’s Hebei University of Technology addressed this issue by uncovering a new property of a sensor material. Read on to learn more about it.

Low-Cost Laparoscope Designed for Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Despite its advantages, laparoscopic surgery remains largely inaccessible in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) due to the high cost of equipment and other logistical challenges. To bridge this gap, researchers recently developed the KeyScope, an affordable laparoscope designed specifically for LMICs. Read on to learn more.

Additive Manufacturing for Platinum Alloys

The use of platinum-iridium (PtIr) alloys for pins and electrodes in medical devices is growing substantially in applications such as cardio and neuromodulation devices. This article focuses on PtIr applications. Read on to learn more.

Near-Void-Free 3D Printing

Researchers at The Institute of Metal Research of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have made significant strides in the development and manufacturing of near-void-free titanium alloys using 3D printing. This achievement could lead to the production of titanium alloy materials with exceptional fatigue resistance, paving the way for broader applications of metal 3D printing materials. Read on to learn more.

Prosthetic Material Could Help Reduce Infections from Intravenous Catheters

Published in the journal Scientific Reports, researchers have created realistic, skin-like replicas made of Ecoflex, a type of silicone rubber that can potentially serve as a platform to evaluate risks of bacterial infections from intravenous catheters and test wearable sensors, among other biomedical applications. Read on to learn what the study found.

Researchers Develop Microchips That Detect and Diagnose Diseases

New research from NYU shows it’s possible to develop and build microchips that can not only identify multiple diseases from a single cough or air sample, but can also be produced at scale. Read on to learn more.

Scalable 3D Printing Technique Produces Stretchable, Flexible Soft Plastics

A team has reported that they used a class of widely available polymers called thermoplastic elastomers to create soft 3D printed structures with tunable stiffness. Engineers can design the print path used by the 3D printer to program the plastic’s physical properties so that a device can stretch and flex repeatedly in one direction while remaining rigid in another. Read on to learn more.

Materials Help Manage Side Effects of Brain Pacemakers

A team at the Nanostructured and Novel Materials Laboratory at the University of Tabriz has created organic materials for brain and heart pacemakers that rely on uninterrupted signal delivery to be effective. Read on to learn more.

A Tapeworm-Inspired, Tissue-Anchoring Mechanism for Medical Devices

A new interdisciplinary effort led by Robert Wood, the Harry Lewis and Marlyn McGrath Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences in the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and James Weaver, of Harvard’s Wyss Institute, has drawn inspiration from an unexpected source: the world of parasites. Read on to learn more.

Wearable Device for Cells Could Help Restore Brain Function

Wearable devices like smartwatches and fitness trackers interact with parts of our bodies to measure and learn from internal processes, such as our heart rate or sleep stages. Now, MIT researchers have developed wearable devices that may be able to perform similar functions for individual cells inside the body. Read on to learn more.

The Vital Role of TPE Tubing in Scalability and Rapid Deployment

This article explores the critical role that thermoplastic elastomer biopharmaceutical tubing plays in enabling scalability and rapid deployment — a duo of factors that can make all the difference in the industry. Read on to learn more.

Cardio Imaging Device Combines Two Modalities into Single System

This article presents how Conavi combined the two standard intravascular imaging modalities into one — the Novasight Hybrid™ System, the first and only intravascular imaging system to combine co-registered IVUS and OCT in a single system. Read on to learn more.

A Step Toward Safer X-Rays with New Detector Technology

Researchers have taken a step toward safer x-rays by creating a highly sensitive and foldable detector that produces good quality images with smaller dosages of the rays. Read on to learn more about it.

Hourglass-Shaped Stent Could Ease Severe Chest Pain from Microvascular Disease

A study at Mayo Clinic suggests that an hourglass-shaped stent could improve blood flow and ease severe and reoccurring chest pain in people with microvascular disease. Of 30 participants in a phase 2 clinical trial, 76 percent saw improvement in their day-to-day life. Read on to learn more.

Researchers Develop Clinically Validated, Wearable Ultrasound Patch for Continuous Blood Pressure Monitoring

A team of researchers at the University of California – San Diego has developed a new and improved wearable ultrasound patch for continuous and noninvasive blood pressure monitoring. Read on to learn more.

Researchers Develop Wireless Brain Neural Signal Recorder

Researchers have developed a fully embedded wireless brain neural signal recorder. The device was created by Prof. Jang Kyung-in. Read on to learn more.

High-Powered Lasers: A Call for Fiber Delivery

A new feature of the modern high-powered laser is the need to transmit various wavelengths through fiber optics. Fiber optics have emerged as the primary method for transmitting laser light due to its ease of setup and disconnection. Read on to learn more.

Maximizing the Potential of TPU Extrusion in Medical Tubing Applications

Achieving the best results during TPU extrusion is about choosing the right material and dialing in the process by tackling routine challenges like moisture control, extruder setup, and pressure management. When these details are properly accounted for, OEMs can benefit from a smoother, more consistent extrusion that meets stringent medical device requirements. Read on to learn more.

Precision Robotics Offers Hope for Heart Disease Treatment

Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy is a leading cause of sudden cardiac death among young adults. Sans treatment, a heart transplant remains the only curative option for those living with the inherited condition. Now, a research team has developed a robotic technology that allows scientists to test numerous potential therapeutics, simultaneously, in this condition for the first time.

Device Shows Promise for Noninvasive Treatment of Chronic Pain

Researchers at the University of Utah’s John and Marcia Price College of Engineering and Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine have published promising findings about an experimental therapy that has given many participants pain relief after a single treatment session. Read on to learn more.

Solvent-Free 3D Printing Material Could Enable Biodegradable Implants

In a paper published in Angewandte Chemie International Edition, researchers at Duke University have invented a new solvent-free polymer for DLP printing. Besides eliminating the shrinkage problem, the lack of solvent also results in improved mechanical properties of the part while maintaining the ability to degrade in the body. Read on to learn more.