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Getting under your skin for better health

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Researchers say interstitial fluid could replace blood to monitor health and wellness

Newswise — The next frontier of continuous health monitoring could be skin deep.

Biomedical engineers at the University of Cincinnati say interstitial fluid, the watery fluid found between and around cells, tissues or organs in the body, could provide an excellent medium for early disease diagnosis or long-term health monitoring.

Credit: Mark Friedel
A prototype of a device that can measure interstitial fluid uses microneedles.
« Getting under your skin for better health

In a paper published in the journal Nature Biomedical Engineering, they outlined the potential advantages and technological challenges of using interstitial fluid.

“Why we see it as a valuable diagnostic fluid is continuous access. With blood, you can’t easily take continuous readings,” said UC doctoral graduate Mark Friedel, co-lead author of the study.

“Can you imagine going about your day with a needle stuck in your vein all day? So we need other tools.”

Researchers are looking for alternatives to monitor a person’s health and wellness. Sweat is a good medium for measuring certain things like stress or anxiety because it contains hormones such as cortisol. But the body is stingy with other chemicals that are not so easily released in sweat, Friedel said.

“Sweat glands are big filters that don’t allow everything to pass through,” he said. “So more than half of the things we want to monitor have no access to sweat at all.”

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Blood is the gold standard for health monitoring. But people also have liters of interstitial fluid that make up as much as 15% of their body weight.

“The key feature of blood that makes it so advantageous is we understand blood really well,” Friedel said. “If you have something in your blood, we know what will happen to your heart or your liver,” he said.

Researchers said interstitial fluid contains many of the same chemicals in the same proportions as blood, offering a potential alternative to costly and time-consuming lab work.

The study outlined the various ways doctors can sample interstitial fluid, from applying suction to the skin to deploying microdialysis.

“As biomedical engineers, one of our greatest goals is to help people better manage their health by making diagnostics more accessible,” said co-lead author Ian Thompson at Stanford University.

“A big barrier to this accessibility is that most current diagnostics rely on blood sampling, which can be painful and requires trained personnel to perform. Thus, in recent years there has been growing interest in using interstitial fluid just under the skin as a diagnostic sample that is more accessible and less painful to extract.”

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In UC College of Engineering and Applied Science professor Jason Heikenfeld’s Novel Devices Lab, students are developing sensors to measure hormones and other chemicals in interstitial fluid. They use microneedles less than 1 millimeter in length that pierce the skin through a tiny patch.

“If you had a splinter, it probably went deeper into your skin than our microneedles,” Friedel said. “They’re generally painless. I don’t feel it most of the time. The most uncomfortable part is removing the tape that holds the device down.”

But even if you don’t know it’s there, your body does, Friedel said. And this minute reaction can affect the test results.

“There’s a Schrödinger’s observer effect with interstitial fluid. Any time you try to collect and measure it, you inherently change the fluid itself,” Friedel said. “If you stick a needle in your skin, your body becomes inflamed and then your [sample] levels change. For continuous biomonitoring, we want to know those concentrations as they are when you’re not being poked with a tiny needle.

“That’s why it’s such a challenging fluid that hasn’t been used outside of diabetes monitoring.”

Still, researchers say, interstitial fluid holds enormous promise for monitoring health through wearable technology. This could help doctors track the efficacy of drugs to ensure proper dosage or provide early diagnosis of illness by monitoring the immune system.

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But Friedel said there is still a lot to learn.

“We’re trying to unlock the box and read the instructions inside to understand what’s in interstitial fluid and what the potentials are for exploiting it,” he said.

Friedel and Thompson worked with co-author Heikenfeld, UC’s James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy, the Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico and Southeast Missouri State University.

The study was funded through grants from the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research and the U.S. Office of Naval Research.

Journal Link: Nature Biomedical Engineering

Source: University of Cincinnati

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Health

How Melissa Joan Hart Gets Relief for Her Dry Eyes

Whether Melissa Joan Hart is on set directing her latest movie, recording an episode of her podcast or driving her kids to school, she is always on the move.

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(Family Features) Whether Melissa Joan Hart is on set directing her latest movie, recording an episode of her podcast or driving her kids to school, she is always on the move. When she first began experiencing dry, irritated eyes, she wasn’t sure how to relieve her symptoms. However, after a recommendation from her friend, she learned there was a line of eye lubricant products designed to relieve dry eye symptoms of eye dryness, burning, itching and discomfort.

“My eyes get dry and irritated, especially during long days on set when I’m spending hours staring at monitors,” Hart said. “I learned I am one of 35 million people in the United States who experience dry eyes. I didn’t know how I could find relief – until I discovered Refresh.”

Hart is teaming up with Allergan, an AbbVie company, to share her experience using the number one doctor-recommended family of products. The Refresh line was developed from more than 30 years of dedicated eye research and includes artificial tears, ointments and gel drops to relieve symptoms of eye dryness. The drops offer fast-acting relief for a wide range of individuals based on their symptoms and severity levels, including products for daytime, nighttime and anytime use.

“Many people experience eye dryness for many reasons and have different needs, which is why I like that the Refresh portfolio has several different products that offer fast-acting relief for a wide range of individuals,” Hart said. “Right now, I use Optive Mega-3 and Relieve PF Multidose to relieve my eye dryness and prevent further irritation. There’s a great tool on the Refresh website to help you figure out which product may be right for you.”

Hart continued, “Refresh has quickly become a part of my daily routine, on and off set. I have a few bottles tucked away in different rooms around the house and in my purse to use throughout the day. I don’t leave the house without them.”

Refresh eye drops can be found at all major retailers and online. Learn more at refreshbrand.com and take the quiz to see which product may help relieve your symptoms.  

Use only as directed. For US consumers only.

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Source: Allergan, an AbbVie company.

US-RFS-220152 2/23


SOURCE:
Allergan, an AbbVie company

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Health

Monitoring Your Kidney Health

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(Family Features) Kidney disease is one of the most common complications of living with diabetes and can increase your risk for heart disease and stroke. There are steps you can take to keep your heart, brain and kidneys healthy, including an annual kidney screening. A urine Albumin-to-Creatinine Ratio test is a simple urine test used to identify early signs of kidney disease and give you and your health care team important information to manage your risk. Learn more about taking charge of your health at KnowDiabetesbyHeart.org.


SOURCE:
American Heart Association

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Health

Colon Cancer Awareness Month: How Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now saving more lives for those with potential cancer

Spreading awareness that colon cancer can be detected and treated earlier than ever with new technology.

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Credit:
Dr. Rosario Ligresti, chief of Gastroenterology at Hackensack University Medical Center
« Colon Cancer Awareness Month: How Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now saving more lives for those with potential cancer

Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey is working to spread awareness that colon cancer can be detected and treated earlier than ever with new technology. 

Colorectal cancer is the third deadliest cancer and  is expected to cause more than 52,000 deaths in 2023.

While the rate of adults diagnosed with colon or rectal cancer has been declining since the 80’s, rates of colon cancer in people younger than 50 is now on the rise – concerning many experts.  

The latest screening test – the Medtronic GI Genius™ uses artificial intelligence to identify colorectal polyps of varying shapes and sizes in real time, facilitating the diagnosis and prevention of colorectal cancer, the second leading cause of cancer-related death in the U.S.

“I was four years overdue for a colonoscopy,” said 49 year old Twinique Wright. “I was dreading it but I took comfort in knowing that my doctor was going to use the latest technology with a much greater chance of detecting polyps.” 

The GI Genius intelligent endoscopy module, authorized by the FDA in April 2021 uses computer-aided detection algorithms to identify colorectal polyps of varying shapes and sizes in real time, facilitating the diagnosis and prevention of colorectal cancer. GI Genius has demonstrated the ability to improve detection of colorectal polyps – by as much as 40% – that can lead to CRC.

For more information on the GI Genius or for an interview with one of our colorectal cancer specialists, contact [email protected]

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Source: Hackensack Meridian Health 

https://stmdailynews.com/category/lifestyle/

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