Dissolving electronic device to monitor and treat heart dysfunction gets FDA approval

Efimov additionally says that currently many serious heart complications including atrial fibrillation and heart block, can follow cardiac surgeries or catheter-based therapies.

“We hope our new device can close this gap in technology,” he says, “Current post-surgical monitoring and treatment of these complications require more sophisticated technology than currently available. ”

The gadget is the size of a postage stamp, feels soft, and is a flexible device that uses an array of sensors and actuators. It is curated to conduct highly complicated analyses compared to traditional devices like pacemakers.

The study states that the device can continuously stream information to physicians in addition to having the ability to be positioned in various sections of the heart. 

“Physicians can remotely monitor the patient’s heart in real-time,” the study states, “the device also is highly transparent, allowing physicians to observe specific heart regions to make a diagnosis or provide treatment.”

Co-author of the study, Luyao Lu emphasizes that many deaths from heart attacks and heart surgeries could be prevented if medical professionals had access to better tools. They could treat victims quicker in the following weeks and months of the event. 

“The tool developed in our work has great potential to address unmet needs in many programs of fundamental and translational cardiac research,” he said.

Favorable outcomes

So far the technology has been tested in small animal models exhibiting multiple functions, unlike traditional pacemakers. 

The researchers said the transient device provides an improved picture compared to a pacemaker which only provides an overall image of the heart (whether it's beating or not). 

The gadget made of biocompatible materials works to reestablish normal heart rhythms while simultaneously detecting valuable insights into the heart’s well functioning as well as the problematic area. 

Its transparency further allows researchers to optically map many essential cardiac physical parameters through the device. As a result, the invention offers a more comprehensive understanding of the underlying issues of the heart and its dysfunctions.

The device that dissolves into benign products was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). 

“Similar to absorbable stitches, the device degrades and then completely disappears through the body’s natural biological processes,” researchers explain, “the device’s bioresorbable nature could reduce healthcare costs and improve patient outcomes by avoiding complications from surgical extraction and lowering infection risks.”

The research was published today in the journal Science Advances.