Under Pressure

There are over 31,000 anesthesiologists currently in the United States facing the mental burden of administering medication, monitoring patient vitals, and making sure surgeries are performed safely and comfortably. In 2018, about 12% of the total surgeries completed at UW Medical Center used an arterial line, which is a highly invasive device can result in complications ranging from arterial occlusion, arterial thrombosis, compartment syndrome, infection, nerve injury and even skin necrosis if not recognized and treated early. Other less invasive devices exist, including the automatic pressure cuff which is an inflatable device normally applied on the brachial artery, but its inaccurate measurement, limited placement options (generally only arm), and non-continuous monitoring are significant disadvantages. Our group, Under Pressure, proposes using an adhesive device placed on the carotid artery that incorporates a photoplethysmography (PPG) light absorption sensor, an electrocardiography (ECG) electrical signal sensor, and a conformational ultrasound (US) patch to generate a measurement of blood pressure. The blood pressure cuff method is too archaic and the arterial line can lead to patient injury – the continuous and noninvasive nature of the Under Pressure patch has the potential to revolutionize blood pressure monitoring in the operating room.