'Smart Bandage' Can Now Help Heal Chronic Wounds: What We Know

Smart patch can monitor healing, administer medicines to wounds, and use electrical signals to drive tissue growth.

(Photo: Science.org)

A 'smart bandage' or 'smart patch' that can monitor healing, administer medicines to wounds, and use electrical signals to drive tissue growth has recently been created by a team of researchers at The California Institute of Technology.

The big point: The patch that has the ability to monitor and use combined therapy on wounds such as diabetic ulcers, burns, and non-healing surgical wounds. It is reportedly stretchable, wireless, wearable bioelectric device that can benefit those with infected chronic wounds.

What was said: Dr Wei Gao, told The Guardian that the device consists of two parts: one reusable flexible printed circuit board and one disposable patch," and that "the disposable patch contains biosensors, electrodes, and drug-loaded hydrogels."

The study also stated that the patch “consists of a multimodal biosensor array for simultaneous and multiplexed chemical sensing of wound exudate biomarkers.”

It also described the composition of the smart patch in detail:

“A stimulus-responsive electro-active hydrogel loaded with a dual-function anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial peptide (AMP), as well as a pair of voltage-modulated electrodes for controlled drug release and electrical stimulation.”

Through this, Gao expressed how all signals can be sent to any user interface, such as  a computer or cell phone thereby enabling wireless control of drug release while applying electric potential.

How was it done: The team of researchers described how they tested these bandages on a diabetic mouse and rat wounds both prior to and after an infection. By doing so, they found that the devices could detect variables like temperature, glucose levels, and pH of the wound fluid.

According to the study, "The wearable patch's therapeutic capability towards enhanced tissue regeneration via electrical stimulation was assessed using an in vitro wound healing assay. The model wound treated with electrical stimulation showed substantially faster and more consistent migration of HDF cells towards the wound area for four subsequent days after wounding as compared to the control group without electrical stimulation.”

This study has therefore shown significant promise towards a world of wireless bandages that can speed up the process of healing chronic wounds. - not sure