Scientists at the University of Arizona have experimentally developed a microscopic microchip that sticks directly to the bone and, while inside, monitors its restoration and plays a role in speeding up bone repair.
This device, called the Computer for Bone, will soon send its data wirelessly, and the day is not far when doctors will be able to get accurate data on bone healing. This new technology has been dubbed the oscilloscope technology, the details of which have been published in Nature Communications.
Dr. David Margolis and colleagues at the University of Arizona have worked on it. According to him, it is very important to monitor orthopedic issues and bone development during an injury but this process is also very difficult. The process of bone fusion takes a long time in the elderly and especially in arthritis patients.
Orthopedic surgeons say some people with arthritis spend more time in hospitals than patients with heart attacks and cancer. This is because some bone defects and fractures take a long time to heal. In this context, oscilloscope technology can play a very important role.
According to experts, it is important to know the state of the musculoskeletal system. Now the new technology can be called a complete computer built on bones. But it was important that the chip sticking to the bone be very thin and that it be made in such a way that it is as thick as paper. It is flexible and does not affect the bending of the bones nor does it require any battery.
To glue the computer chip firmly, engineers have added calcium particles to it, as well as particles with a nuclear structure, similar to bone cells. Interestingly, as the bone grows, so does the chip itself.
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