Personalized 3D Cardiac Implants

Today’s heart implants use electrodes typically deployed at one or two points on the heart to determine when an assistive shock is needed. The limited amount of information this provides limits the effectiveness of pacemakers and defibrillators and often results in unnecessary shocks to the patient. One solution has been to incorporate multiple types of sensors on a flat, flexible substrate, but when wrapped round a heart, wrinkles in the material cause poor or intermittent contact with the tissue.

Recently, researchers discovered a way to custom fit sensors. Using images of the heart, they created models using a 3D printer. They then built a sensor array out of a stretchy polymer substrate that fits the contours perfectly and also moves as the heart beats. The stretchy wrap can be embedded with a variety of sensors to capture ECG information as well as oxygenation, temperature, and pH. They have even experimented with a light sensor that could detect heart attacks by identifying the presence of NADH, a fluorescent enzyme that accumulates in the muscle during an attack.

To date, the technique has only been tested on beating rabbit hearts outside the body. Trials in live animals, followed by years of human clinical trials will be needed in order to determine safety and effectiveness long term.