It is so small, you can barely see it, but a microsensor created by University of Alberta engineers may soon make a huge difference in the lives of people recovering from hip replacement surgery. The U of A research team has invented a self-powered wireless microsensor for monitoring the bone healing process after surgery--it is so tiny it can fit onto the tip of a pen.
"This microsensor not only reduces post-operation recovery time, it will also help reduce the wait time for patients needing artificial joint implants," says Dr. Walied Moussa, a professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering.
During the healing process that follows joint replacement, bone grows and attaches to the pores on the surface of the implant creating greater fixation and stability of the joint. This process is known as osseointegration.
Using nanotechnology, the researchers built a device that measures and compares the relative osseointegration of a hip implant over time. The microsensor will be able to monitor the progression of the biological fixation between bone tissue and the implant.
The sensor is permanently implanted with the joint and is powered kinetically--it uses the natural movement of the patient's body as its power source. When it isn't being used, it stays dormant until a doctor asks it to start transmitting data.
Careful monitoring of how the patient is healing will help patients recover as quickly as possible and resume normal activities with less chance of over stressing the fracture during recovery and rehabilitation. It also allows the surgeon to more accurately decide when it is safe to send patients home from the hospital with their new implants.
"The ability to monitor and quantify this healing process is critical to orthopaedic surgeons in determining a patient's rehabilitation progress," says Moussa, who has a lab in the National Research Council's National Institute for Nanotechnology. "Until now, there has been no quantitative method for assessing osseointegration."
The device will also cut down the need for X-rays to monitor bone functionality, reducing costs and exposure to radiation. And the sensor can detect and identify bone less before it is even visible on a radiograph.
This technology will not only monitor bone healing at the time of surgery but also can determine when implants are worn out and need to be replaced. It will be valuable throughout the patient's lifetime for observing and maintaining the health of the implant. This research has the potential to transform biomedical practice with fascinating applications in artificial knees, hip replacement, and other joint therapy. Earlier this year, TEC Edmonton, a joint initiative of the U of A and Edmonton Economic Development Corp to advance technology transfer and commercialization, filed a provisional U.S. patent application for the work.
Source: University of Alberta
Related stories:
Unclear how much pounding new hips, knees can take
(AP) -- One in 75 patients who gets a knee or hip replaced must get it replaced again within three years, new research finds, although the studies underscore a question: Just how much pounding can a new joint take if you want it to last?
Researchers coat titanium with polymer to improve integration of joint replacements
Research at the Georgia Institute of Technology shows that coating a titanium implant with a new biologically inspired material enhances tissue healing, improves bone growth around the implant and strengthens the attachment and integration of the implant to the bone.
Ultra-fast, ultra-intense laser has clean-cut advantage
Many people equate lasers with a sci-fi battle in a galaxy far, far away or, closer to home, with grocery store scanners and compact disc players. However, an ultra-fast, ultra-intense laser, or UUL, with laser pulse durations of one quadrillionth of a second, otherwise known as one femtosecond, could change cancer treatments, dentistry procedures, precision metal cutting, and joint implant surgeries.
New test for joint infection could spare some patients an unnecessary procedure
A potential diagnostic test that could help surgeons confirm or rule out the presence of infection-causing bacteria in prosthetic joints that require surgical revision has been developed by researchers at the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), a part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Such a test could spare a subgroup of people who need the surgery a time-consuming and costly treatment for infection, while helping to ensure that people who need the procedure get it. The test is described in the March issue of the
Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.
Freeze-dried tendon implants prove effective in early studies
Donated, freeze-dried tendon grafts loaded with gene therapy may soon offer effective repair of injured tendons, a goal that has eluded surgeons to date. According to study data published today in the journal
Molecular Therapy, a new graft technique may provide the first effective framework around which flexor tendon tissue can reorganize as it heals.
Surgical glue
In a few years’ time, instead of fiddling with needle and thread, sur-geons may simply use glue to connect implants to living tissue. They took their idea from mussels, which can stick to any surface, be it porous rock or the smooth hull of a ship.
Bone-growing nanomaterial could improve orthopaedic implants
For orthopaedic implants to be successful, bone must meld to the metal that these artificial hips, knees and shoulders are made of. A team of Brown University engineers, led by Thomas Webster, has discovered a new material that could significantly increase this success rate.
Nanowire coating for bone implants, stents
University of Arkansas researchers have found a simple, inexpensive way to create a nanowire coating on the surface of biocompatible titanium that can be used to create more effective surfaces for hip replacement, dental reconstruction and vascular stenting. Further, the material can easily be sterilized using ultraviolet light and water or using ethanol, making it useful in hospital settings and meat-processing plants.