The way ultrasound imaging is performed, engineers have developed a stamp-sized sticker that sticks to the skin and provides continuous ultrasound imaging. Currently, this is done using sophisticated and heavy equipment that requires specialised technicians. These ultrasound machines provide live images of the heart, lungs, and other organs. However, they are mostly only available in hospitals and medical facilities, making them inaccessible for many.

This is what engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have aimed to solve with their new creation. They obviated the need to use bulky machines and developed a small sticker that sticks to the skin and provides ultrasound imaging continuously for 48 hours. [1]

Figure 1. Engineers Develop Stamp-Sized Sticker that can Provide Ultrasound Imaging for 48 Hours

Figure 1 shows the researchers applied the stickers to volunteers and showed the devices produced live, high-resolution images of major blood vessels and deeper organs such as the heart, lungs, and stomach. The stickers maintained a strong adhesion and captured changes in underlying organs as volunteers performed various activities, including sitting, standing, jogging, and biking.

The current design requires connecting the stickers to instruments that translate the reflected sound waves into images. The researchers point out that even in their current form, the stickers could have immediate applications. For instance, the devices could be applied to patients in the hospital, similar to heart-monitoring EKG stickers, and could continuously image internal organs without requiring a technician to hold a probe in place for long periods of time. [2]

If the devices can be made to operate wirelessly — a goal the team is currently working toward — the ultrasound stickers could be made into wearable imaging products that patients could take home from a doctor’s office or even buy at a pharmacy. [3]

The bottom elastomer layer is designed to stick to skin, while the top layer adheres to a rigid array of transducers that the team also designed and fabricated. The entire ultrasound sticker measures about 2 square centimetres across and is 3mm thick – about the area of a postage stamp. [4]

References:

1. https://gadgets360.com/science/news/wearable-stickers-alternative-bulky-ultrasound-machines-imaging-48-hours-3205876
2. https://www.labmanager.com/news/mit-engineers-develop-stickers-that-can-see-inside-the-body-28550
3. https://news.mit.edu/2022/ultrasound-stickers-0728
4. https://eandt.theiet.org/content/articles/2022/07/stamp-sized-ultrasound-stickers-can-see-inside-the-body/

Cite this article:

Thanusri swetha J (2022), Engineers Develop Stamp-Sized Sticker that can Provide Ultrasound Imaging for 48 Hours, AnaTechMaz, pp.64