A biomedical engineer at Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill., is developing a device that may one day be able to help patients screen for cystic fibrosis or monitor their diabetes, among other medical uses, according to The New York Times.
Five notes:
1. John Rogers, PhD, is creating a wearable, wireless and battery-free device that uses multiple tiny sensors to analyze chemicals found in sweat on the wearer's skin. The goal is for the device to offer a "real-time snapshot of the wearer's health or fitness," according to NYT.
2. In a study published in Science Advances Jan. 18, Dr. Rogers and a team of researchers found the device could provide real-time information on the wearer's pH, sweat rate, and levels of chloride, glucose and lactate.
"It fits into a broader trend that you're seeing in medicine, which is personalized, tailored approaches to treatment and delivery of care," Dr. Rogers told NYT.
3. Dr. Rogers and his research team are testing the device's ability to screen for cystic fibrosis at Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, where they are in the late stages of a clinical trial that is using the device to analyze concentrations of chloride in a patient's sweat. The researchers plan to apply for FDA approval after completing the trial.
4. Another potential use for the device is diabetes management. The idea is to analyze a patient's glucose levels based on the level of glucose in their sweat, eliminating the need for a blood draw. However, although the device can measure the glucose in sweat, researchers have suggested this is not an accurate reflection of blood glucose.
5. Dr. Rogers is also working on a sweat sensor for urea and creatinine, which are two indicators of kidney function. Another one of his projects relates to whether these types of devices could help monitor patients' progress as they undergoing rehabilitation after a stroke.
To read the article in The New York Times, click here.