Minimally invasive power sources for implantable electronics

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Materials Science
• Medical Devices

Background:

• Implantable medical electronics (IMEs) are crucial for healthcare monitoring and therapy.
• Current power sources for IMEs are often rigid, bulky, and lead to immune rejection or limited longevity.
• There is a growing need for non-invasive, miniaturized power solutions to advance IME development.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide a comprehensive review of historical developments in IMEs and their power sources.
• To analyze the advantages and limitations of various miniaturized power sources for IMEs.
• To highlight promising minimally invasive power sources for future IME applications.

Main Methods:

• Review of historical development of IMEs and miniaturized power sources.
• Analysis of energy storage devices (batteries, supercapacitors) and energy harvesters (nanogenerators, biofuel cells).
• Evaluation of wireless power transfer technologies (RF, near-field, ultrasonic, photovoltaic).

Main Results:

• Recent advances in biocompatible materials and microfabrication enable ultra-flexible, bioresorbable, and multifunctional IMEs.
• Progress in minimally invasive power sources remains limited, necessitating further research.
• Three promising categories of minimally invasive power sources are identified: energy storage, energy harvesting, and wireless power transfer.

Conclusions:

• Minimally invasive power sources are essential for the future of painless, long-term functioning IMEs.
• Further development in energy storage, harvesting, and wireless power transfer is needed to meet the demands of advanced IMEs.
• This review offers a comprehensive understanding of power sources for next-generation IMEs in healthcare.