“Smart” syringe | Embracing innovating technology
It can be difficult to use a syringe in certain situations, especially when you’re in pursuit of great precision. Brigham and Women’s Hospital scientists are developing an innovative “smart” syringe that can transport drugs to their target based on a change in resistance.
The research was published in the Nature Biomedical Engineering journal. “Targeting specific tissues via conventional needle can be difficult and often requires a well-trained person,” says Jeff Karp, professor of medicine at Brigham. “Over the last century there has been little innovation in the needle itself, and we saw this as an opportunity to develop better more precise instruments. We sought to achieve improved tissue targeting while keeping the design as simple as possible for ease of use,” he explains.
The i2T2 device occured by combining parts of commercially available syringes and a standard hypodermic needle. The smart needle’s specific design is to move along tissue by changing the pressure it exerts. This different pressure allows easy, targeted movement of the needle into the targeted tissue. The feedbacl uses a direct, efficient approach that reduces any chance of error.
The i2T2 underwent testing for accuracy on difficult tissues from three different animals. It had a very positive result and there was no special training required.
“This smart syringe is a simple solution. It could be rapidly pushed to patients to help increase accuracy and reduce injuries from misfires. We completely transformed the needles with a small modification that achieves better tissue targeting,” said first author of the study, Giris Gitnis. “It’s a platform technology, so the uses could be very broad,” he said.
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Author: PC-GR
The World of Technology
