Scientists have created a Smart Bandage that can monitor chronic wounds and aid in their recovery. The gadget may be useful for those who have burns, diabetic ulcers, and non-healing surgical wounds.
A person’s body usually takes care of itself and heals rapidly after suffering a cut, scrape, burn, or other wound. Yet, diabetes may obstruct healing, leading to wounds that won’t mend and perhaps spreading an infection.
The smart bandage developed by the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) could make treating these wounds easier, more effective, and less costly.
“There are many different forms of chronic wounds, notably in diabetic ulcers and burns that survive a long time and cause major difficulties for the patient,” said Wei Gao, an associate professor of medical engineering at Caltech.
Technologies that may hasten recovery are required.
Unlike a standard bandage, which may only be made of layers of absorbent material, smart bandages are made from a flexible and elastic polymer with integrated circuitry and medicine. For the patient’s or a doctor’s inspection, the bandage may wirelessly transport the data collected from the wound to a nearby computer, tablet, or smartphone.
With the help of the electronics, the sensor can monitor chemicals like pH or temperature that might point to bacterial infection or inflammation in the wound, as well as compounds like uric acid or lactate.
It may deliver an antibiotic or another drug that is stored within the bandage straight to the site of the wound to treat the swelling and infection. In the study published in the journal Science Advances, the researchers claimed that it can also administer a low-level electrical field to the wound to encourage tissue development and hasten healing.
The bandage was tested in a lab environment using animal models. The smart bandages also showed their ability to speed up the healing of chronic, infected wounds similar to those observed in humans. Researchers were able to get real-time data about the animals’ metabolic health and their wounds. Gao said that additional research will focus on improving bandage technology and putting it to the test on actual patients since the findings are promising.