Hip Chip to Monitor Osseointegration
BY ARIELLA P. GOLOMB, MD, OCTOBER 23, 2006
The University of Alberta, Canada announced the development of a microsensor geared towards hip replacements that wirelessly monitors an implant's osseointegration. Built using nanotechnology, the device will be powered kinetically through the natural movement of the patient's body and remain dormant until a physician seeks data. A provisional U.S. patent for this work has been filed by the U of A and Edmonton Economic Development Corp.
According to U of A researchers, benefits of this technology include:
-Measures osseointegration quantitatively
-Provides careful monitoring during rehabilitation so normal activities can be resumed with less chance of stressing the fracture, and patients can be sent home from the hospital at the appropriate time
-Cuts down on X-rays (therefore lower radiation and cost)
-Monitors when implants are worn out and need to be replaced
While this technology is exciting and certainly may have other relevant orthopedic applications besides hip implants, the annoucement left us wondering: Do these quantitative measurements of osseointegration correlate with clinically relevant outcomes? Does careful monitoring of healing lead to a quicker recovery time? Will this become a source of differentiation for some implants, a ubiquitous monitoring device or a great idea which never finds clinical relevance? What is the timeline to implantation in humans?
We look forward to seeing more data as this area of technology continues to evolve.
