Markets

Inside the OEM: Medtronic

The company’s key markets include cardiovascular, medical-surgical, neuroscience, and diabetes.

Pulse Plasma Nitriding Provides Unique Surface Treatment of Implantable Metals

Plasma nitriding has a broad appeal to surface treat many metallic materials used in medical applications, including titanium alloys

Miniature Optical Fiber Treatment Device Offers More Effective Cancer Immunotherapy

The device infuses antibodies through the miniature fiber to the tumor to activate T cells around tumor cells.

‘Healthy’ Electric Current Produced Inside Human Body

New nanotechnology has many potential applications, including harvesting clean energy to operate devices implanted in the body through the body’s natural movements.

Quantum Brain Sensors Could Spot Dementia

Quantum sensors for the brain may soon identify brain diseases like dementia, ALS, and Parkinson’s.

Winter 2021 Resource Guide

In our winter edition of the MDB Resource Guide, learn about new cleaning requirements and find the right company to match your medical-design needs.

Optical Design Considerations for Additive Manufacturing

Light-based methods open many opportunities for medical applications.

Optical Cochlear Implants Offer Better Hearing

The team designed an implant with LED emitters.

2021 Create the Future Design Contest: Medical Category Winner — Halo Speculum

A win for women.

Antimicrobial Coating for Orthopedic Implants Prevents Dangerous Infections

The coating is customizable to individuals and requires less than 10 minutes to prepare and use.

Low-Power Electrical Stimulation Could Aid Stroke Rehabilitation

A team used liquid gallium to test an antiviral and antimicrobial on a range of fabrics, including facemasks.

New Products and Services: November 2021 Medical Design Briefs

Power entry modules, application processors, proximity testing services, and more.

Increasing the Lifespan and Stability of Human Implantable Medical Devices

A coating minimizes tissue damage by reducing friction.

Microneedle Patch Delivers COVID-19 DNA Vaccine

The patch can be stored for 30 days at room temperature.

Photoelectric Implant Controls Activity of Spinal Neurons

An implant allows neuroscientists to activate or inhibit specific spinal-cord neurons by applying light at a specific wavelength. It will give researchers insight into...

Turning Pollen into 3D Printing Ink for Biomedical Applications

The ink could be used to make parts for tissue engineering, toxicity testing, and drug delivery.

Self-Powered Implantable Stimulates Fast Bone Healing

When placed over a fracture, the device generates electricity from movement, accelerating bone healing.

Liquid Metal Sensors and AI Help Prosthetic Hands to ‘Feel’

Researchers used individual fingertips fitted with stretchable tactile sensors with liquid metal.

Bioactive Glass and Metal Implants Dissolve at the End of Operational Lifespan

The devices eliminate the need for invasive removal once they have served their purpose.

Dissolvable Microneedle Patch Treats Baldness

A new dissolvable microneedle patch could treat baldness and help hair regrow quickly.

Cartilage Resurfacing Implant Reduces Pain, Restores Hip Joint Function

A textile-based implant containing cartilage derived from stem cells reduced pain and restored hip joint function to baseline levels in a study of dogs with symptoms...

Microneedles Provide More Effective Delivery of Antibiotics to Wounds

A flexible polymer composite microneedle array can overcome the physicochemical bacterial biofilm present in chronic, nonhealing wounds and deliver both oxygen and...

Soft Microrobots Demonstrate Potential for Targeted Drug Delivery

Tiny tumbling soft robots that can be controlled with rotating magnetic fields can climb slopes, tumble upstream against fluid flow, and deposit substances at precise...

Robotics-Driven ‘White Cane’ Guides Users to Desired Location

Equipped with a color 3D camera, an inertial measurement sensor, and its own on-board computer, a newly improved robotic cane could offer blind and visually impaired users...

Cells Construct Living Composite Polymers

Biomedical engineers at Duke University have demonstrated that a class of interwoven composite materials called semi-interpenetrating polymer networks (sIPNs) can be produced by living cells. The...

PCB Microelectronics Assembly Takes Center Stage for Medical Miniaturization

Small medical electronics are at the forefront of a new round of technology trends involving printed circuit board (PCB) assembly and manufacturing.

On the Rise: Wearable Injector Systems

The advent of automatic drug-delivery devices has empowered patients to take their treatments in their own hands.

Tiny Wireless Device Illuminates Neuron Activity in the Brain

Researchers are creating new tools for a method called optogenetics, which shines light at specific neurons in the brain to excite or suppress activity.