Someday, a wearable patch could give patients and doctors the same information, minus the poke in the arm and the schlep to the medical lab.
The patch will track markers in fluid under the skin, between and around the cells, called interstitial fluid.
The result: All your patients’ lab work – cholesterol, hormones, electrolytes, and more – could become do-it-yourself, easing burdens on the health care system and empowering patients with real-time, clinical-grade information about their health. Sweat and saliva may be easier to get to, but interstitial fluid is a better mirror for blood. It leaks from tiny blood vessels , and it carries nutrients to and removes waste from your skin.
The microneedles or wires are made from a polymer that sucks up the fluid, which flows to a biochemical sensor targeting the marker you want to measure. Glucose sensors use an enzyme that reacts to glucose to reveal its concentration in the blood. Some researchers – like Jason Heikenfeld, PhD, and his team at the University of Cincinnati – focus on"aptamers,"; short single strands of DNA that bind to target molecules."You can leverage the body's own ability to generate stuff to grab a needle in a haystack,"; he said.
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