(Invited) Wearable Electrochemical Devices for Sensing and Treatment of Chronic Wounds

Chronic wounds are characterized by impaired healing and affect millions globally. These wounds result from a variety of factors, including pressure ulcers, venous and arterial insufficiencies, peripheral neuropathy, diabetes mellitus, and surgical complications. Present wound assessment and treatment strategies are expensive and ineffective. For example, widely used visual wound assessment methods lack diagnostic rigor. Wound biopsies address this issue but are expensive, time consuming, and invasive. Similarly, on the treatment side, current FDA-approved products are expensive, have short shelf-life, and achieve complete healing in ~50% cases at best. In this talk I will discuss my group’s approaches to addressing these key issues in wound care using innovative electrochemical devices. Specifically, I will provide details of how we are using new self-powered electrochemical sensors and water-powered biocompatible batteries for wound care applications.