The notion of using electronic patches to deliver medication and other healthful goodies is nothing new. After all, some medicine can be absorbed via the skin so it only makes sense to create patch that take advantage of that fact. You know what else can be absorbed via the skin? Sweet, sweet tabs of LSD. Wait, why in the heck did I go on that tangent? It must be April Fool’s Day or something. In any event, this relatively simple technology is getting more innovative with each passing skin shed. Now there is a really cool electronic skin patch that will help deliver much needed medication to those suffering from Parkinson’s disease.
A team of scientists at Seoul National University have developed a smart patch that monitors the disease and delivers said medication right into the bloodstream. The whole thing operates via a series of nanomaterials(really, really small materials.) Silicon nanosensors monitor muscle movement, chromium and gold nanowires monitor skin temperature, and silica nanoparticles hold the medication. There is also a functionality in place that keeps track of the patient’s skin temperature, just in case the patch causes some heating. Even cooler, it’s fully flexible, which is rare for anything that is embedded with electronics. The future is here, people!
The patch currently requires a power supply and transmitter but the creators are working on a new model that eliminates the need for anything besides the patch itself. So far tests have proven extremely positive. We’ll let you know when this starts showing up in hospitals and doctor’s offices.
