Smart threads promise next-generation of implants Tuesday, 27 September 2016

When wounds are sutured together today, the thread serves as a physical means of holding the structure together for protection and to promote healing. Now researchers at Tufts University School of Engineering are developing "smart" threads that they hope will provide even better outcomes for patients.

The smart thread expands the concept of implanted diagnostic sensors, providing information about pressure, stress, strain and temperature at the suture that it holds together. The thread can also monitor glucose and pH levels, in order to track the healing of the wound, whether infection is emerging, or whether the body's chemistry is out of balance.

To create these "smart" threads, the researchers experimented with different types of conductive threads, soaking them in various physical and chemical sensing compounds, then connecting them to wireless circuitry to transmit information to a nearby mobile device.

The research was published in the journal Microsystems & Nanoengineering in an article titled “A toolkit of thread-based microfluidics, sensors, and electronics for 3D tissue embedding for medical diagnostics".

According to paper author and director of the Nano Lab in the department of electrical and computer engineering at Tufts University, sutures are a great opportunity to implant useful technology in the body.

"The ability to suture a thread-based diagnostic device intimately in a tissue or organ environment in three dimensions adds a unique feature that is not available with other flexible diagnostic platforms," said Sameer Sonkusale, Associate Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering at Tufts University.

"We think thread-based devices could potentially be used as smart sutures for surgical implants, smart bandages to monitor wound healing, or integrated with textile or fabric as personalized health monitors and point-of-care diagnostics."

Of course, wearables still have a major role to play in helping wearers monitor their physical condition, but the fact that the sensors have to lie on two-dimensional, flat surfaces limit their usefulness. On the other hand, smart threads can be easily bent and shaped, allowing a wider range of uses both in and out of the human body.

As an implant and as a smart wearable, thread is also abundant, inexpensive, thin and flexible, and can be manipulated into complex shapes. Its wicking properties also allow precise delivery of required chemicals.

[Image: Jack Moreh courtesy Free Range Stock]