The Need

Wound healing and disinfection for chronic wounds presents significant hurdles within the medical industry. Current state of art is inadequate and adds a significant cost burden to the healthcare system with many health and life-quality challenges for patients. After the formation of an open wound, adequate cleaning and dressing is paramount to preventing infection. However, microorganisms can colonize wounds in many different ways with chronic wounds having a much higher incidence of bacterial biofilms, even after a wound is bandaged/dressed. These biofilms allow bacteria to become 10 to 1,000 times more resistant to antibiotic medications compared to non-film bacteria. Additionally, a study from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) indicated that bacterial biofilms accounted for over 2 million cases of infections reported in the U.S., leading to $5 billion in added medical costs annually. Existing wound dressings are generally unable to prevent the formation of bacterial biofilms. Moreover, once biofilms are formed, treatment to remove biofilms to make the wound infection-free is a significant challenge. This capability gap has led to increased demand among medical providers for solutions able to not only prevent biofilm formation but also mitigate existing biofilms.

The Technology

Dr. Shaurya Prakash and his colleagues at The Ohio State University developed electroceutical dressings in 2016 that use direct current to prevent biofilm formation and show much promise for bactericidal effects. The technology features an electroceutical dressing comprised of electrodes, a flexible and light weight supporting circuit to provide reliable antimicrobial performance by applying electrical current to the treatment area. The circuit is protected by adhesives and padding, with power delivery a battery pack with isolation from fluids.

Our latest version has many new features for better control on the electrochemistry and modular design options to add several novel sensors enabling real-time tracking of wound healing and infection mitigation through wireless monitoring. The result is an engineered Smart Platform for Engineered Electroceutical Dressings (SPEEDs), which shows dramatic improvement in antimicrobial activity and positive wound healing outcomes.

Commercial Applications

• Biofilm Infection Treatment and Prevention
• Burn Wound Dressings
• Wound Healing
  • Diabetic Neuropathy and Neuroischemia

Benfits/Advantages

• Improved healing time
• Applicable to chronic wounds
• Antimicrobial properties

Research Interests

Shaurya Prakash Associate Professor, Mechanical & Aerospace Engr. His research interests include: Nanofluidics and microfluidics, Instrument development for healthcare, Water purification, Bio-inspired Micro-and Nanosystems, Fundamental Studies on Fluid and Mass Transport at the Micro- and Nanoscale.