Smart stent feels the squeeze to alert doctors and keep patients safe

The smart stent device uses medical-grade stainless steel and looks similar to most commercial stents

Stents are implanted to keep arteries open and prevent heart attack, but a third of patients experience restenosis – or renewed narrowing of the artery – which can lead to complications and the need for further medical intervention.

Now, a team led by University of British Columbia (UBC) electrical and computer engineering professor Kenichi Takahata has developed a “smart stent” that monitors subtle changes in the flow of blood through the artery, detecting the narrowing in its earliest stages and making early diagnosis and treatment possible.

“We modified a stent to function as a miniature antenna and added a special micro-sensor that we developed to continuously track blood flow. The data can then be sent wirelessly to an external reader, providing constantly updated information on the artery’s condition,” said Takahata.

The device is said to use medical-grade stainless steel and looks similar to most commercial stents. It is also the first angioplasty-ready smart stent, so it can be implanted using current medical procedures without modifications.

Research collaborator Dr York Hsiang, a UBC professor of surgery and a vascular surgeon at Vancouver General Hospital, noted that monitoring for restenosis is critical in managing heart disease.

“X-rays such as CT or diagnostic angiograms, which are the standard tools for diagnosis, can be impractical or inconvenient for the patient,” said Hsiang. “Putting a smart stent in place of a standard one can enable physicians to monitor their patient’s health more easily and offer treatment, if needed, in a timely manner.”

The device prototype was successfully tested in the lab and in a swine model. Takahata, who holds patents for the technology, said his team is planning to establish industry partnerships to further refine the device, put it through clinical trials and eventually commercialise it.

The research is described in Advanced Science. Engineering researcher Xing Chen, now a research associate at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and Babak Assadsangabi, a postdoctoral fellow at UBC’s faculty of applied science, also contributed to the study.

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