Browse Topic: Medical equipment and supplies
Using an inexpensive electrode coated with DNA, MIT researchers have designed disposable diagnostics that could be adapted to detect a variety of diseases, including cancer or infectious diseases such as influenza and HIV.
Researchers at the University of California, Irvine, and New York’s Columbia University have embedded transistors in a soft, conformable material to create a biocompatible sensor implant that monitors neurological functions through successive phases of a patient’s development.
Researchers at Cornell University, working with collaborators, have created an extremely small neural implant that can sit on a grain of salt. Despite its size, the device can wirelessly transmit brain activity data from a living animal for more than a year.
A soft, thread-like implantable bioelectronic device is designed to sense and stimulate tissues with minimal invasiveness. Roughly a quarter of a millimeter in diameter, the NeuroString fiber can incorporate hundreds to thousands of independent electronic channels capable of detecting neurochemicals, monitoring muscle contractions, recording single-neuron activity, or delivering targeted stimulation.
Scientists used a “smart” shirt equipped with an electrocardiogram to track participants’ heart-rate recovery after exercise and developed a tool for analyzing the data to predict those at higher or lower risk of heart-related ailments.
Cornell researchers and collaborators have developed a neural implant so small that it can rest on a grain of salt, yet it can wirelessly transmit brain activity data in a living animal for more than a year.
Bioelectronics, such as implantable health monitors or devices that stimulate brain cells, are not as soft as the surrounding tissues due to their metal electronic circuits. A team of scientists has developed a soft polymer hydrogel that can conduct electricity as well as metal can. As the material is both flexible and soft, it is more compatible with sensitive tissues. This finding has the potential for a large number of applications, for example, in biocompatible sensors and in wound healing.
Researchers have pioneered a 3D printing method that grows metals and ceramics inside a water-based gel, resulting in exceptionally dense, yet intricate constructions for next-generation biomedical technologies.
Researchers combined mussel adhesive protein with decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM) to develop a composite hemostatic sponge that offers both strong tissue adhesion and biocompatible biodegradability.
A low-cost, portable biosensor can quickly identify a protein whose altered levels are associated with psychiatric disorders, such as depression, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder. When it becomes commercially available in the future, it may contribute to early detection, which is essential for treating and monitoring patients’ clinical conditions.
As advanced technologies reshape the medical device landscape, the demands placed on contract manufacturers are evolving. Today’s partners are expected to do more than deliver components — they must anticipate disruptions, adapt quickly, and bring a level of technical and strategic depth that supports faster development without compromising quality.
For any supplier in the medical device manufacturing industry, sustainable success requires an ability and a willingness to bring customers’ ideas to reality. There are often innovative, potentially life-saving projects that are delayed or even abandoned due to limitations on the manufacturing end. However, many specifications that seem impossible to meet can be achieved with persistence, collaboration, and dedication to customers’ ideas.
In today’s medical equipment market, reliability is not a luxury — it is a necessity. Every adjustment, every movement, and every interaction with the equipment must be performed flawlessly to ensure patient safety, caregiver efficiency, and long-term service life. Behind this design and precision are highly engineered motion control components, such as gas springs, electric linear actuators, and dampers, that ensure safe, ergonomic operation of medical equipment across a wide range of healthcare applications.
In this Q&A, Audrey Turley, director of lab operations – biosafety at Nelson Laboratories, spoke with Medical Design Briefs about the critical importance of monitoring and managing material changes in medical devices. Even seemingly minor shifts — such as switching suppliers or altering processing steps — can introduce unknown additives or variations that impact biocompatibility and, ultimately, patient safety. Turley discusses how manufacturers can effectively document and justify changes, maintain regulatory compliance, and strengthen supplier relationships to ensure ongoing device safety. She also shares insights into trends shaping post-pandemic supply-chain strategies and the growing emphasis on proactive risk assessment and communication across the product lifecycle.
The global electronics supply chain has always run in cycles — tight supply followed by sudden gluts — but in recent years, the pace and scale of disruption have accelerated. From semiconductor shortages to shifting trade policies and pandemic-driven bottlenecks, OEMs across every sector have been forced to rethink how they source and secure critical components.
Rice University Houston, TX
Soft robots, medical devices and implants, and next-generation drug delivery methods could soon be guided with magnetism — thanks to a metal-free magnetic gel developed by researchers at the University of Michigan and the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart, Germany.
Bruno Boutantin, Extrude Hone
RMIT University Melbourne, Australia
Researchers have developed a wearable wound monitoring device with integrated sensors that could reduce infection risks by minimizing the need for frequent physical contact. The proof-of-concept device is designed for reuse, making it more cost-effective and practical than disposable smart bandages and other emerging wound monitoring technologies.
A research team at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences has developed a 3D-printed implant to deliver electrical stimulation to injured areas of the spinal cord offering a potential new route to repair nerve damage. Details of the 3D-printed implant and how it performs in lab experiments have been published in the journal Advanced Science.
In today’s medtech landscape, innovation isn’t just about what a device does — it’s about how reliably and cost-effectively it gets to market. As devices grow smaller, smarter, and more user-centered, materials like liquid silicone rubber (LSR) play a bigger role in enabling performance, comfort, and compliance. From implantables to connected wearables, LSR is helping engineers meet growing design and usability demands. As demand for the material grows, so do the pressures on supply chains, including launch timelines, increased regulatory scrutiny, and rising technical complexity.
“Big iron” instruments, aka diagnostic radiology equipment such as x-ray, ultrasound, and CT scanners, are indispensable for diagnosing and guiding treatment for an array of conditions from tumors to arthritis to fractures. While a tremendous asset for hospitals, these instruments are traditionally large, heavy, power hungry, and expensive. They are also difficult to acquire, install, and use.
Scientists have produced a new, powerful electricity-conducting material that could improve wearable technologies, including medical devices. The new technique uses hyaluronic acid applied directly to a gold-plated surface to create a thinner, more durable film, or polymer, used to conduct electricity in devices like biosensors. It could lead to major improvements in the function, cost, and usability of devices like touchscreens and wearable biosensors.
A research team led by Prof. Jinho Chang from the department of electrical engineering and computer science at DGIST has developed an ultrasound-based wireless charging technology capable of rapidly and efficiently charging the batteries of implantable medical devices. The technology has achieved world-class energy efficiency, fully charging a commercial battery within two hours, even inside the human body.
Researchers have developed a handheld device that could potentially replace stethoscopes as a tool for detecting certain types of heart disease.
Researchers have developed a soft, thin-film auditory brainstem implant (ABI). The device uses micrometer-scale platinum electrodes embedded in silicone, forming a pliable array just a fraction of a millimeter thick. This novel approach enables better tissue contact, potentially preventing off-target nerve activation and reducing side effects.
Researchers have developed a 3D microprinted sensor for highly sensitive on-chip biosensing. The sensor, which is based on a polymer whispering-gallerymode microlaser, opens new opportunities for developing high-performance, cost-effective lab-on-a-chip devices for early disease diagnosis.
University of Liège Liège, Belgium
Researchers have created a groundbreaking prototype for a new kind of leadless pacemaker designed for both children and adults. The innovative micropacemaker would be the first fully leadless system to be placed in the pericardial space surrounding the heart. That would allow the device to be implanted in a minimally invasive way in children and those with congenital heart disease, while also providing a lower-risk leadless pacemaker option for adults.
The increased functionality of today’s medical devices is astounding. Optical devices, for example, analyze chemicals, toxins, and biologic specimens. Semiconductor devices sense, analyze, and communicate. Microelectromechanical system (MEMS) devices utilize inertial methods to detect motion, direct light, and move components over short distances. Radiofrequency (RF) devices communicate wirelessly to other devices directly and remotely over the Internet. Handheld acoustic devices scan the body and build a virtual 3D model that shows conditions in the body. The innovation currently happening in the medical device industry is staggering, limited only by imagination and finding technical methods to implement the vision.
Engineers have developed a smart capsule called PillTrek that can measure pH, temperature, and a variety of different biomarkers. It incorporates simple, inexpensive sensors into a miniature wireless electrochemical workstation that relies on low-power electronics. PillTrek measures 7 mm in diameter and 25 mm in length, making it smaller than commercially available capsule cameras used for endoscopy but capable of executing a range of electrochemical measurements.
Mini organs are incomplete without blood vessels. To facilitate systematic studies and ensure meaningful comparisons with living organisms, a network of perfusable blood vessels and capillaries must be created — in a way that is precisely controllable and reproducible. A team has established a method using ultrashort laser pulses to create tiny blood vessels in a rapid and reproducible manner. Experiments show that these vessels behave just like those in living tissue. Liver lobules have been created on a chip with great success.
Engineering precision is an art of nuance — especially when it comes to selecting the right bearing for medical devices. What begins as a straightforward specification process quickly becomes a complex yet familiar puzzle of competing requirements. Oftentimes, engineers discover that a bearing’s performance extends beyond its basic dimensional specs, involving considerations of material properties, system integration and supply chain dynamics.
When it comes to technology adoption, the healthcare industry is historically risk averse. Despite strict regulations protecting patient data and concerns over medical outcomes, a new report from Mordor Intelligence reports that the global market for wireless portable medical devices is expected to exceed $31.4 billion this year. 1 The same report projects 12.14 percent compound annual growth through 2030 to meet the demands of a burgeoning geriatric population for wearable and implantable devices and in-home vital signs monitoring.
Pulsed-field ablation (PFA) has dominated the medical device news in recent years, yet it is only one modality among many in the world of ablation therapies, and while groundbreaking, it is limited to a few diseases. It’s time to broaden the conversation and highlight the myriad innovations in ablation technology transforming medical practice.
EPFL Lausanne, Switzerland
As medical technologies continue to evolve, the demand for miniaturized components with tight tolerances and high performance is accelerating. Meeting these requirements calls for advanced manufacturing methods that can deliver both precision and scalability. One process rising to the challenge is micromolding — a technology that is quietly powering some of the most significant advances in modern medical devices.
A pacemaker is a small device that helps control your heartbeat so you can return to your normal life. It has three main parts: a pulse generator that creates electrical signals, a controller-monitor that manages these signals, and leads that deliver the signals to the heart. One key benefit of the pacemaker is its strong titanium casing. Titanium is very strong and lightweight, and it is biocompatible, meaning it works well with the body without causing harmful reactions. This metal is highly resistant to corrosion, which helps keep the casing intact and protective even when exposed to bodily fluids.
The global medical device manufacturing industry is undergoing a rapid transformation driven by technological innovation, automation, and increasing demands for customized, high-quality care. For engineers at the heart of medtech manufacturing, understanding the latest technologies is crucial not only for maintaining competitiveness but also for ensuring regulatory compliance, improving time to market, and optimizing production workflows.
An invention that uses microchip technology in implantable devices and other wearable products such as smart watches can be used to improve biomedical devices including those used to monitor people with glaucoma and heart disease.
In the highly regulated world of medical device manufacturing, post-production cleaning is essential for ensuring safety, compliance, and best performance. Beyond removing surface contamination, it must address intricate geometries, sensitive materials, and strict industry standards. Effectively managing these challenges is key to meeting regulatory requirements and ensuring reliable device function.
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