Drug Delivery & Dispensing

Researchers at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, have embedded needle-like carbon nanofibers into an elastic silicone membrane, creating a flexible “bed of nails” that may open the door to the development of new drug-delivery systems, they say.

Once a porcupine’s quill penetrates your skin, it’s very difficult to remove. That’s the inspiration behind research at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, to develop new types of adhesives, needles, and other medical devices. In a new study, researchers...

Measles vaccines given using nearly painless microneedle patches can immunize against measles just as well as with conventional hypodermic needles, according to research done by the Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In the study,...

Bioengineers at Tufts University School of Engineering, Medford, MA, have demonstrated that silk-based implantable optics can enhance tissue imaging, administer heat, deliver and monitor drugs. In addition, the devices are biodegradable and biocompatible, harmlessly dissolving at predetermined rates and...

The market for microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) used as pressure sensors in medical electronics is likely to grow by 7 percent this year, aided by the use of disposable devices as well as respiratory monitoring, according to iSuppli, El Segundo, CA, a global leader in technology value chain research...

Using “lean” manufacturing principles to speed up treatment times for stroke victims may improve the effectiveness of a clot-busting protein used to treat to treat and reduce brain injury after embolic or thrombotic strokes, according to new research in the American Heart Association’s journal...

RNA isolation is a ubiquitous need, driven by current emphasis on microarrays and miniaturization. With commercial systems requiring 100,000 to 1,000,000 cells for successful isolation, there is a growing need for a small-footprint, easy-to-use device that can...

Millions of injections are given annually, from annual flu shots to childhood immunizations. However, while hypodermic needles deliver controlled, precise injections, the pain they deliver continues to make them unpopular among recipients, especially children. Now, a new laser-based system, being developed by...

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has created coated sutures with sensors that could monitor wounds and speed up healing. The electronic sutures, which contain ultra-thin silicon sensors integrated on polymer or silk strips, can be threaded through needles and, in animal tests,...

Biologists at Stanford University, Stanford, CA, pursuing a model for studying heat dissipation, have created a glove that can rapidly cool down athletes’ core temperatures and dramatically improve exercise recovery and performance. A version of the heat-extraction glove is currently nearing...

There are several medical conditions that require intravenous (IV) fluids. Limitations of mass, volume, storage space, shelf-life, transportation, and local resources can restrict the availability of such important fluids. These limitations are expected in long-duration space exploration...

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) holds great promise to treat neurological disorders ranging from Parkinson's disease to depression. But the current electrode used for implanting in DBS tend to induce an immune response in patients that reduces the treatment's efficacy. over time....