Implants & Prosthetics

Inside the OEM: Smith & Nephew

With COVID behind them and patients and their physicians returning to elective procedures, Smith & Nephew is seeing strong market revenue growth in 2022, according to CEO Deepak Nath, who spoke during its first quarter trading update.

Manufacturing Considerations for Implantable Drug-Delivery Systems

With all the benefits implantable systems offer therapy developers, clinicians, and patients, it is easy to see why market projections for this segment are on the rise.

How Nature Inspires the Future of Health

The animal kingdom has fascinated man from the beginning of time. From the most minute organisms to undersea and land creatures that have perfectly evolved to adapt to their environments, we have...

Implantable Drug-Delivery System Powered by Light

A team of scientists has developed novel technology with the potential to change the future of drug delivery. The device developed represents the first implantable drug-delivery system that is triggered by external light sources of different wavelengths, and not by electronics.

Smart Surgical Implant Coatings Provide Early Failure Warning

Newly developed smart coatings for surgical orthopedic implants can monitor strain on the devices to provide early warning of implant failures while killing infection-causing...

Bending Implantables Enables Infectious Organisms to Take Hold

A study from University of Toronto Engineering researchers shows that mechanical deformation of medically implantable materials — such as bending or twisting — can...

Implantable Device Shrinks Pancreatic Tumors

Houston Methodist nanomedicine researchers have found a way to tame pancreatic cancer — one of the most aggressive and difficult to treat cancers — by delivering immunotherapy directly into the tumor with a device that is smaller than a grain of rice.

Videos of the Month

See the videos of the month, including one about a materials science approach to revealing clues of breast cancer, one on Rice University technology that would give patients one shot and they’d be set for the next couple of months, and more.

Graphene ‘Tattoo’ Treats Cardiac Arrhythmia with Light

Researchers have developed the first cardiac implant made from graphene, a two-dimensional super material with ultra-strong, lightweight and conductive properties.

MRI Safety Testing: How Device Manufacturers Can Ensure Safety of Patients with Implants

With a view to the absolute safety of patients, medical device manufacturers must be aware of the potential risks of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

‘Shape-Shifting’ Implanted Device to Provide Continuous BP Monitoring

SMARTSHAPE consortium, led from University of Galway, will develop an implantable medical device for continuous blood pressure monitoring. The consortium has...

Stretchable Probe Measures Brain Chemicals

A new string-like implant can monitor fluctuations in brain chemicals, like a fitness tracker for the brain.

Medical Design Briefs: 2022 Technology Leaders

Learn about the medical manufacturers and cutting-edge applications that stood out in 2022.

Wireless, High-Speed, Low-Power Communications for Implantable Devices

Implantable bioelectronics are now often key in assisting or monitoring vital organs, but they often lack a safe, reliable way of transmitting their data to doctors.

Magnetic Sensors Track Muscle Length

Using a simple set of magnets, researchers have devised a sophisticated way to monitor muscle movements.

Silicon Nanochip Could Treat Traumatic Muscle Loss

Technology developed by researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine can change skin tissue into blood vessels and nerve cells.

An Investigation to Test Remote-Controlled Drug-Delivery Implant Launched on SpaceX CRS-26

A new remotely controlled drug-delivery implant could one day provide extended, adjustable medication for patients — even those on spacecraft headed for Mars.

Renamic Neo Offers Complete Wireless Connectivity to Implants

Tiotronik’s Renamic Neo communicates with a medical device implanted in a patient, such as a pacemaker, ICD, or implantable cardiac monitor.

Gel-Like, Radioactive Implant Kills Pancreatic Cancer

Biomedical engineers have demonstrated the most effective treatment for pancreatic cancer ever recorded in mouse models. The new treatment completely eliminated tumors in 80 percent...

Battery-Free, Light-Powered Pacemaker May Improve Quality of Life for Heart Disease Patients

Atrial fibrillation — a form of irregular heartbeat, or arrhythmia — leads to more than 454,000 hospitalizations and nearly 160,000 deaths in the United States each year.

Using 3D Printing to Aid in Planning Tumor Removal

The SJD Barcelona Children’s Hospital’s pediatric maxillofacial surgery team has used 3D-printing technology to successfully perform a complicated operation to resect a malignant tumor in an 11-year-old boy.

2022 Medical Winner: The Novel Squid Glaucoma MicroShunt

Glaucoma is the second-leading cause of blindness, affecting 80 million patients globally, including 3 million patients in the U.S.

Robot Sleeves Help Kids with Cerebral Palsy

The garments will contain sealed, airtight regions that can inflate, making them temporarily rigid and providing the force for movement.

Bioengineered Cornea Restore Sight to the Blind and Visually Impaired

Researchers and entrepreneurs have developed an implant made of collagen protein from pig’s skin, which resembles the human cornea. In a pilot study, the implant...

Additive Manufacturing: Creating the Next Generation of Orthopedic Implants

From improved patient outcomes to point-of-care manufacturing, 3D printing offers a host of benefits that promise to transform the orthopedic implant industry once fully implemented.

Show Preview: MD&M Minneapolis 2022

Minnesota is home to Medical Alley and the area is poised to transform healthcare with its combination of institutions and talent in one region.

Dissolving Implantable Relieves Pain

A team of researchers has developed a small, soft, flexible implant that relieves pain on demand and without the use of drugs. The first-of-its-kind device could provide a much-needed alternative to...

Microfluidic-Based Soft Robotic Prosthetics

Scientists have developed a new type of prosthetic using microfluidics-enabled soft robotics that promises to greatly reduce skin ulcerations and pain in patients who have had an amputation...

Powering an ‘Arm’ with Air Could Be Mighty Handy

Mechanical engineers have built a handy extra limb able to grasp objects and go, powered only by compressed air. It’s one of several ideas the engineers at Rice University’s...