Microsystem Technologies for Medical Applications

Abstract

Medical technologies are evolving at a very rapid pace. Portable communication devices and other handheld electronics are influencing our expectations of future medical tools. The advanced medical technologies of our future will not necessarily be large expensive systems. They are just as likely to be small and disposable. This paper reviews how microsystems are already impacting health care as commercial products or in clinical development. Example systems for point-of-care testing (POCT), patient monitoring tools, systemic drug delivery, local drug delivery, and surgical tools are described. These technologies are moving care from hospitals to outpatient settings, physicians' offices, community health centers, nursing homes, and the patients' homes. Microsystems that are rapidly adopted fulfill significant medical needs and are compatible with existing clinical practice.

Current and Future Bioanalytical Approaches for Stroke Assessment

“…It is a fluorescence immunoassay used with the Triage Meters for the rapid, quantitative measurement future science group Review Pullagurla, Baird, Adamski & Soper of B-type/brain natriuretic peptide, d-dimer, MMP-9 and S100B in whole blood or plasma specimens. The Triage meter plus (Biosite Incorporated, CA, USA) is a battery powered portable fluorometer that displays digital results in a turn-around-time of 20 min [141]. To eliminate the confusions in interpretation of clinical data due to multiple markers, Biosite ® has developed an algorithm called the MultiMarker Index™ (MMX).…”

On the Slow Diffusion of Point-of-Care Systems in Therapeutic Drug Monitoring

“…Detection of other potentially useful markers falls in analytically challenging concentration ranges, or relies upon detection and read-out technologies that are technically challenging to be re-designed for miniaturization (Cheng et al, 2006; Craighead, 2006; Rusling et al, 2010; Cima, 2011). …”

“…In addition, a variety of glucose meter of few centimeters in size is available to the end user for few tens of dollars (plus test strips costs) that devolve the display of results to smartphones (Lillehoj et al, 2013). Finally, the extensive knowledge of the pharmacokinetics (PK) and the pharmacodynamics (PD) of insulin drove the design of automatized closed loop system integrating blood measurements, evaluation, and dosage adjustment and administration in a small, wearable (and soon implantable) lab-on-a-chip (LoC) devices (Hirsch et al, 2008; Cima, 2011; Bandodkar and Wang, 2014). …”

Sensor-based microphysiometry

“…[3][4][5][6]. Beyond this however, microsensors are developed for in-vivo monitoring of physiological parameters [7]. These sensors (frequently "smart" sensors with integrated signal processing) extend the term to incorporate in-vivo diagnostic devices.…”