Descrizione del progetto
Un impianto wireless riassorbibile di nuova generazione promette di ridurre i rischi di insufficienza cardiaca
Il monitoraggio post-operatorio dopo un intervento chirurgico al cuore è fondamentale per la sopravvivenza. La maggior parte delle tecniche tuttavia non garantisce il monitoraggio continuo, né esiste una disponibilità al di fuori delle strutture ospedaliere. Gli impianti esistono, ma richiedono poi un intervento chirurgico di rimozione, che espone i pazienti a ulteriori rischi. Il progetto 2ND-CHANCE, finanziato dall’UE, sta sviluppando un impianto di prossima generazione che consentirà un monitoraggio continuo. Sarà privo di batteria e utilizzerà gli ultrasuoni per la connettività wireless. Nel momento in cui non sarà più necessario, una fonte di luce esterna attiverà il sua innocuo riassorbimento. Questo non solo mitigherà i rischi di insufficienza cardiaca fornendo un segnale di allerta precoce, ma eliminerà anche completamente la necessità di un intervento chirurgico di rimozione. Inoltre, la tecnologia concepita potrebbe essere applicabile anche in altri settori clinici.
Obiettivo
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death globally. Monitoring heart functions and ischemia is critical for survival after cardiac surgery. Standard monitoring methods such as echocardiogram and ELISA blood test provide single-time measurements. They are available only in hospitals, and there is no continuous monitoring method after patients are discharged, leading to a high rate of recurrent heart failures and rehospitalization. Implantable medical devices are used for treatment of various disorders. However, their non-resorbable nature necessitates an implant removal surgery that puts additional risk of infection and stress on patients and limits their use in postoperative monitoring. Bioresorbable implants may soon revolutionize postoperative monitoring methods. The surgeon will implant a small patch onto the heart during surgery, enabling continuous cardiac monitoring and early alerts for heart failure. This will reduce sudden attacks, rehospitalizations, and financial burden of health care. Then, once the monitoring period ends, triggering with a light source will dissolve the implant; thus, providing a significant second chance for the survivors of cardiac failure without the burden of secondary surgery. The technological advancements to bring this vision to the clinic are not available yet. 2ND-CHANCE will facilitate this vision by building components of next-generation wireless implants with triggered bioresorption for cardiac surgery through ground-breaking approaches. This interdisciplinary project aims to develop 1) bioresorbable sensors compatible with the in-body environment, 2) battery-free ultrasonic communication, and 3) encapsulation layer with triggered bioresorption, followed by 4) integration and animal tests. The versatility of the 2ND-CHANCE will also yield potential breakthroughs in fields where monitoring of tissues and biomarkers is crucial such as neurology and ophthalmology, and open new research perspectives.
Campo scientifico
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicinesurgery
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicinecardiologycardiovascular diseases
- engineering and technologyelectrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineeringelectronic engineeringsensors
- medical and health sciencesmedical biotechnologyimplants
Programma(i)
- HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme
Argomento(i)
Meccanismo di finanziamento
HORIZON-AG - HORIZON Action Grant Budget-BasedIstituzione ospitante
34450 Istanbul
Turchia