The bandages involve printing gold electrodes onto a thin piece of plastic. Researchers send a small current between the electrodes to “create a spatial map of the underlying tissue based upon the flow of electricity at different frequencies,” according to a release from UC Berkeley. When cells are dying, their walls start to break down and electrical currents can get through — signaling to the researchers that a bedsore may be developing. See the informational video from UC Berkeley below.
The engineers tested the bandages on rats and published their findings in the journal Nature Communications. The smart bandages could find changes in electrical resistance in the rats’ skin when it was dying.
“By the time you see signs of a bedsore on the surface of the skin, it’s usually too late,” said Michael Harrison, MD, a professor of surgery at UCSF and a co-investigator in the study. “This bandage could provide an easy early-warning system that would allow intervention before the injury is permanent. If you can detect bedsores early on, the solution is easy. Just take the pressure off.”
More articles on bedsores:
Prevent, treat bedsores: New guidance from ACP
Oral supplements help heal bedsores, study shows
