LOS ANGELES — A micro pacemaker for fetuses developed by researchers at the University of Southern California five years ago is now preparing for its first human trial.
The fetal pacemaker is a slim cylinder with components including a single transistor relaxation oscillator, an epoxy capsule, and a small lithium battery. The pacemaker is implanted into a fetus via a 3.8 mm-diameter insertion cannula.
The battery can only power the device for about a week. When the power runs low, a high-powered field generator can be used to generate a radio frequency magnetic field outside the body. This wirelessly recharges the battery through inductive coupling.
“We’ve been testing and refining the recharging system with the actual pacemakers in anticipation of a first patient. We want to be prepared, if and when such a patient presents,” Gerald Loeb, a biomedical engineer at USC told IEEE.
The device has been tested in sheep fetuses in the past years. The FDA granted humanitarian use for the device in 2015.
The fetal pacemaker is a slim cylinder with components including a single transistor relaxation oscillator, an epoxy capsule, and a small lithium battery. The pacemaker is implanted into a fetus via a 3.8 mm-diameter insertion cannula.
The battery can only power the device for about a week. When the power runs low, a high-powered field generator can be used to generate a radio frequency magnetic field outside the body. This wirelessly recharges the battery through inductive coupling.
“We’ve been testing and refining the recharging system with the actual pacemakers in anticipation of a first patient. We want to be prepared, if and when such a patient presents,” Gerald Loeb, a biomedical engineer at USC told IEEE.
The device has been tested in sheep fetuses in the past years. The FDA granted humanitarian use for the device in 2015.
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