Instant Pacemaker
Having completed its task, the new wireless pacemaker dissolves in the patient's body
A large team of researchers led by Igor Efimov from George Washington University and John Rogers from Northwestern University has developed a pacemaker that completely dissolves in the patient's body when it is no longer needed.
Since the first pacemaker was implanted in 1958, millions of people have used these devices. According to British statistics, 32,902 pacemakers were implanted in the UK in 2018-2019. The pacemaker generates short electrical pulses if the heart rate drops below a certain value (the "base frequency"). It is usually installed under the skin or under the pectoral muscle, and the pacemaker electrode is carried through the vein to the desired heart chamber.
Although many patients require permanent pacemakers, others need them for several days or weeks, for example, after open-heart surgery. "After a period of critical risk, the stimulation function is no longer needed," explains Professor John Rogers. But removing a pacemaker is associated with some risk, so the researchers decided to create a device that will disappear without a trace after completing the task.
A small thin device made of magnesium, tungsten, silicon and polymer PLGA resembles a tiny tennis racket in shape, weighs only half a gram and is implanted directly on the surface of the heart.
Figure and video (below) from the press release of Northwestern University First-ever transient pacemaker harmlessly dissolves in body -VM.
The materials of the stimulator are subject to certain biochemical reactions, as a result of which it eventually dissolves in the body. The stimulator receives energy for operation using wireless technology, in which radio frequency energy from an external device is sent to a receiver inside the pacemaker, where it is converted into an electric current, which is used to regulate the work of the heart. A similar technology is used to wirelessly charge smartphones and electric toothbrushes.
The stimulator was tested on the hearts of mice and rabbits, as well as on slices of a human heart and on live dogs and rats. Tests have shown that the device is able to generate the energy needed to stimulate the heart of adult patients. In an experiment on rats, the device worked for four days, and a scan two weeks later showed that it began to dissolve. After seven weeks, the stimulator was no longer visible in the pictures.
Scientists say that they can change the operating time of the stimulator in the body by adjusting the thickness of the substance that surrounds electronic materials.
Article by Choi et al. Fully implantable and bioresorbable cardiac pacemakers without leads or batteries is published in the journal Nature Biotechnology.
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