Microneedle patches applied to the skin are already being used to painlessly deliver drugs and detect chemicals in a patient’s bloodstream. However, experimental new bandages are reported to stop bleeding from wounds much more effectively than traditional bandages.
Microneedle patches generally take the form of small squares of polymer with a series of tiny needles studded on the underside. When those needles are pressed into the skin, they pierce only the top layer where nerves are not present.
It then comes into contact with the interstitial fluid that lies between the skin cells. Depending on the patch’s intended purpose, the needle either releases a drug payload into that liquid or measures the level of chemicals already present. of Body fluids (usually corresponding to levels in the bloodstream).
Developed by Ast. The new microneedle his patch, developed by his professor Amir Sheikhi and his colleagues at Pennsylvania State University, is a little different.
this is A biocompatible, biodegradable needle is made of gelatin methacryloyl doped with silicate nanoplatelets, the latter of which has hemostatic properties. In other words, it helps stop bleeding by constricting blood vessels and causing blood to clot.
When the patch is applied directly to the wound, the needle increases the surface area where the nanoplatelets come into contact with the blood, increasing their effectiveness. Additionally, by interlocking with the surrounding skin surface, the needles help facilitate wound closure.
“In vitro, engineered MNA [microneedle arrays] Coagulation time reduced from 11.5 minutes to 1.3 minutes. Also, in a rat liver bleeding model, he reduced bleeding by more than 90%. Those ten minutes could be the difference between life and death.
It should be noted that these clotting times are relative to controls that received no treatment of any kind. Nevertheless, MNA Did it It reportedly works faster than traditional hemostatic dressings.
Sheikhi and his team hope that once more research is done and clinical trials are conducted, the patch will eventually be widely used, much like traditional plasters.
The study is described in a paper recently featured in the journal bioactive material.
Source: Pennsylvania State University
