Bet you don’t realize how many- and how extensive- the need for chronic wound care is in America? (I admit, I didn’t know the extent, until I because of the 6.7 million folks getting the therapy [and mine had been extending over 4 years].) And, that treatment doesn’t come cheap- costing some $2.5 BILLION a year.
As such, any device that can make this a more controllable item will be welcomed by the medical establishment.
Acute wounds follow a straight-forward pattern. Inflammation, proliferation/repair, and then remodeling. If the wound doesn’t follow this path, it is reclassified as a chronic wound. That is when debridement is included in the therapy (removal of dead or decaying tissue).
The authors (Wei Gao, Cal Tech, lead author) of this new paper (A stretchable wireless wearable bioelectronic system for multiplexed monitoring and combination treatment of infected chronic wounds) have proposed a new device the monitors the status of the wound (and dispenses treatment) continuously. The stretchable bandage has sensors to detect skin temperature changes (to which medicine will be dispensed). There are also electrodes to provide electrical stimulation to promote tissue regeneration.
As such, the device both protects (the bandage keeps the wound moist and protected) and augments- the healing process. The sensor array is packed to detect glucose, lactate, ammonia, uric acid (indications of inflammation and bacteria activity that can harland wound treatment.) There’s also a hydrogel layer that is stocked with medication that can be delivered to the wound.
The device was tested in mice infected with Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa with great success. The mice were divided into four groups-no treatment, drug only treatment, electrical stimulation alone, and all treatments. Over 14 days, wound closure was faster in those mice that received treatment, with the best results obtained by those treatment all the options running.
The researchers then compared experimental groups with no treatment, drug-only treatment, electrical stimulation only, or a combination of drug release followed by electrical stimulation. They found that over 14 days, wound closure occurred faster in the mice that were given the treatments than in the control group mice that were not given treatment. The highest wound closure rate occurred in the mice treated with both medication and electrical stimulation.
The next steps are to use human subjects, which will lead up to a full-blown clinical trial.
This can’t come soon enough. I think of a friend in Florida who lost her battle with a wound that would not heal in May of 2020. COVID disrupted her home health care but she was struggling with the healing process even before the virus disrupted us all.
I’m with you, Alana!