Today, heart rate drivers (pacemakers) with the traditional battery power have to be replaced every 5-7 years due to the depletion of batteries.
It is not cheap and not harmless procedure.
The latest technology, recently presented in the US, suggests that one day this procedure will become unnecessary. Aerospace engineers from the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor, USA) have developed a prototype pacemaker, which is charged at the expense of the patient's own heart contractions, to which he is connected.
Pacemakers are implantable devices that use electrical impulses to control the frequency of cardiac contractions.
Amin Karami, a researcher at the Aerospace Engineering Department of the University of Michigan, at a meeting of the American Heart Association noted that many patients with pacemakers doomed to live with such devices for years are children. We can only imagine how many expensive operations to replace the device can be avoided if the new technology can be put into practice.
At a meeting in Los Angeles, Amin Karami reported on a study in which he and his colleagues tested an innovative device that uses piezoelectricity, converting the energy of the heart's contractions into an electrical charge.
Researchers suggest replacing the traditional artificial rhythm drivers on batteries with this revolutionary device.
Karami says that this principle could be used in other implantable devices that do not need a lot of energy, such as a cardioverter defibrillator.
To develop their technology, Karami and his colleagues measured the vibrations in the chest, which are created when the heart beats. Then they accurately reproduced these vibrations in the laboratory with a special shaking device. He was connected to a prototype pacemaker, which was tuned to produce the right amount of energy - it turned out to be more than enough to operate the device.
This unique invention belongs to the class of "energy harvester". Such devices are divided into two groups - linear and nonlinear. Line devices work stably only in a certain range of heart rate. Non-linear devices, such as this test sample, are able to regulate energy production in wide ranges, so they are insensitive to heart rate changes in the diseased heart.
Scientists tested their non-linear device using 100 heart rate options during the simulation. The test results coincided with the expectations of the researchers - the device worked steadily at any rhythm. Using the mechanical energy of the heart, this prototype can generate 10 (!) Times more energy than current pacemakers consume.
Researchers claim that their invention can generate enough energy in the heart rate range from 20 to 600 beats per minute. This is stated in the survey summary.
Also, Karami argues that neither cellular phones, nor microwave ovens, nor personal computers in any way affect the operation of the new device.
The next step in the plans of the developers is to implant the ready pacemaker, which in size will be half the size of modern devices with batteries. They hope to soon bring new technology to the US and world medical equipment market.
The British Heart Foundation (BHF) recalls that the invention still has to undergo clinical trials before the scientists are convinced of its reliability and safety for patients.
Professor Peter Weissberg of the BHF said in a statement that today thousands of patients with pacemakers are forced to visit the clinics every year and check the condition of the batteries for timely replacement. He added that if researchers improve their prototype and prove its effectiveness, it will significantly reduce the need for replacing batteries for similar devices around the world.
This study was sponsored by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and NCATS.
medbe. en.
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