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Implanted biomedical devices used for drug delivery, tissue engineering, or sensing can help improve disease treatment. But, often these devices are susceptible to attack by the immune system. To help reduce that immune-system rejection, a team of scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology,...

University of Washington researchers have created PolySTAT, a new injectable polymer that strengthens blood clots. The polymer, administered in a single shot, addresses internal injuries and reduces blood loss.

Current hearing-loss treatments deliver drugs to the middle ear by requiring repeat injections. A device from The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Cambridge, MA, sends precise, automated, and timed quantities of one or more drugs directly into the fluid of the inner ear.

This invention places a drug delivery system inside a prosthetic implant to circumvent the physical issues encountered after fitting the implant. Implants being relatively large in size would be able to house the drug-carrying device inside them without compromising the structural integrity or the...

New wireless retinal implants from Stanford University researchers convert light transmitted from special glasses into electrical current. The resulting current stimulates the retinal neurons known as bipolar cells.

Vienna University of Technology and Vienna Medical University researchers have created artificial blood vessels from a special elastomer material. To produce the vascular prostheses, polymer solutions were spun in an electrical field to form very fine threads and wound onto a spool. The prostheses can...

Manufacturing researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have identified important challenges for powder bed fusion, the chief method for "printing" metal parts. By identifying the factors that influence the manufacturing process, professionals will improve the creation of...

Engineers at Oregon State University have used additive manufacturing to create an improved glucose sensor for Type 1 diabetes patients. Matched with portable infusion pumps, the new system monitors blood glucose concentrations, delivers insulin, and maintains safe hormone levels.

A biomedical engineer at UNSW Australia uses semiconductor technology to view organs of the human body, down to the level of a single cell. The imaging technology, developed by optical and industrial measurement manufacturer Zeiss, was originally created to scan silicon wafers for defects.

A team of investigators at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and the University of Southern California have developed an implantable micropacemaker designed for use in a fetus. The micropacemaker, designated a Humanitarian Use Device by the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA), will...

A team of hearing and communication experts led by the Keck School of Medicine of USC successfully implanted an auditory brainstem implant (ABI) device in four children who previously could not hear.

According to a recent study by the University of Georgia College of Family and Consumer Sciences, bioplastics made from protein sources have shown significant antibacterial properties. The materials could be used in medical applications, such as wound healing dressings, sutures, catheter tubes, and...

Inspired by nature, Saarland University researchers have equipped an artificial hand with muscles made from shape-memory wire. The new technology enables the fabrication of flexible and lightweight robot hands for industrial applications and novel prosthetic devices.

AAMI, the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, is leading the small-bore connectors initiative, an international effort to decrease tubing misconnections and increase patient safety. Recently, AAMI has released two additional standards focusing on how to design connectors...

Researchers at MIT have developed a method to stimulate brain tissue using external magnetic fields and injected magnetic nanoparticles. The technique allows direct stimulation of neurons, which could be an effective treatment for a variety of neurological diseases, without the need for...

Scientists at the Texas Heart Institute are working to create a permanent artificial heart.

Mo Rastgaar, a Michigan Technological University mechanical engineer, and his team have developed a robotic ankle that "sees" where it is going.

A Seoul National University professor developed a synthetic technology that reproduces the sense of touching real human skin. The artificial skin senses pressure, temperature, strain, and humidity. The soft material is also embedded with self-heating elements.

A University of Rochester team has fabricated a material that self-stretches as it cools. The rubber-like polymer reverts back to its original shape when heated.

The Assistive Context Aware Toolkit (ACAT) technology, used by famous physicist Stephen Hawking, is now open-source.

While the Japanese art of origami has been “a rich source of inspiration” for scientists working to construct such 3D forms, the limitation to simple shapes has held up development of new applications in areas such as biomimetic systems, soft robotics and mechanical meta-materials, especially...