MIT ultrasound technology can help monitor pregnant women, athletes and cancer patients
Engineers at MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) have created a sticker the size of a postage stamp that produces high-quality ultrasound images of internal organs and can be used to monitor the activity of muscles and organs in electronic devices.
The patch, presented in the magazine “Science”, on Thursday on Friday (28), produced high-resolution images that allowed the team to observe changes in blood vessels, organs and muscles in volunteers who performed different physical activities.
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One side of the device contains solid hydrogel – the substance that (in its liquid form) is used for
ultrasound traditional – while the other side is composed of transducers that send sound waves and translate echoed signals into images.
The MIT team said that the high-quality visual output of the patch can support the observation of tumor progression and the diagnosis of disease.
Pregnant women can also observe development of their fetuses in utero, and athletes can monitor their heart and muscle activity, adjusting their workouts to avoid pain or injury.
Although patches must be attached to transducers – devices that can convert sound waves into images – it’s a huge improvement over the portable ultrasound or massive machines traditionally used in hospitals.
MIT engineers are working on a wireless version of the patch , which would communicate with cell phones through AI (artificial intelligence) algorithms that analyze images and make the product so “wearable and accessible” as cheap as buying Band-Aids at the drugstore.”
The research was partially funded by the US Army Office of Research through the MIT Soldier Nanotechnologies Institute, where students and professors work on innovations in the service of the US Armed Forces.
Large number
48. This is the number of hours of continuous images the stickers can produce.
What We Don’t Know
When will the final version of the sticker be released and at what cost will it be available to consumers.
