Carbon dioxide (CO2) created by the body is a marker of ventilation, tissue perfusion, and metabolism. In critically ill patients, changes in the ventilatory and circulatory status of the patient will affect exhaled CO2 levels sooner than changes in the oxygen saturation that is routinely measured. Capnographs are devices that use CO2 from a patient’s expired breath to monitor the cardiopulmonary status during critical procedures, airway management, cardiac arrest care, and mechanical ventilation. These waveforms immediately sense changes in CO2 levels that may signal respiratory distress or cardiopulmonary collapse. Monitoring end-tidal CO2 (EtCO2) has become the standard in ALS care and is recommended by both the American Heart Association and European Resuscitation Council in the 2010 and 2015 Guidelines for Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation and Emergency Cardiovascular Care science.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Neonatal mortality is a significant burden in resource-limited settings, specifically sub-Saharan Africa. At a tertiary referral hospital in Malawi, 24% of all neonates admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit die. At more rural hospitals in the region, this rate is even higher. Neonates weighing less than 1000g at birth had the highest mortality rate at 88% and those that died commonly lost up to 40% of their birthweight due to severe dehydration from a lack of intravenous fluids. Intravenous fluid pumps are used to provide fluids to these neonates, but current solutions either have prohibitive costs or are inappropriate for use in neonates. A solution to prevent dehydration of neonates in resource-limited settings could substantially improve neonatal mortality in the regions with the greatest burden.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Incorrect administration of insulin (e.g., too little, too much, or at wrong times) can result in transient and serious hypo- and hyperglycemia, wide glycemic excursions, and diabetic ketoacidosis. Special care must be taken to ensure that correct dose of insulin is administered. A report of cases in which providers asked patients to demonstrate his or her insulin injection technique identified serious flaws in insulin selfadministration. In one case, a patient was not properly using an insulin pen and so was unaware that she was not getting any insulin at all. In addition, the recommended practice of priming the pen before each injection to remove air from the needle reduces the insulin dose to be administered. There is a need to accurately confirm the dose of insulin injected, thus providing more reliable and accurate treatment.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Chronic headache and migraine are frequent, severe neurological conditions that reduce quality of life. There are no highly effective pharmacologic interventions and those that are used have a substantial side effect profile. Headache focused biofeedback may be an effective intervention, but treatment is expensive and is currently only available at specialized facilities such as Seattle Children’s. Creating headache-focused biofeedback that is more accessible would allow patients to manage their headaches more effectively and reduce the cost and time associated with treatment at a center.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Intravenous (IV) fluids are a therapy used ubiquitously in critically ill patients; they are the mainstay of treatment in patients who are in shock (low blood pressure resulting in end-organ damage) from severe infection or traumatic hemorrhage until the underlying cause can be found and treated. However, it is difficult to judge the appropriate amount of IV fluids to administer. Too little, and the patient remains in shock, at risk of stroke, heart attack, and death. Too much, and the patient is at risk of fluid flooding their organs, increasing length of ICU stay, length of ventilator dependence, need for dialysis, and risk of postoperative infections. Further, patients who suffer a large insult also sustain damage to the lining of their capillaries, resulting in highly permeable, “leaky” blood vessels. This last variable, capillary permeability, is currently an unknown, without which we are walking a tightrope blindfolded. Bedside knowledge of capillary permeability, and thus the efficacy of IV fluid administration, would enable clinicians to successfully get a patient out of life-threatening shock while avoiding the life-threatening complications of over treatment.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

When the adenoids are surgically removed, a laryngeal mirror is used to visualize the nasopharynx and guide the procedure. The mirror currently used during adenoidectomies makes visualization of the nasopharynx challenging due to its limited viewing angle, incomplete view of the nasopharynx and fogging of the mirror. With reduced vision of the nasopharynx, there is a risk of collateral damage to tissues near the adenoids, and it is challenging to teach adenoidectomy because it is challenging for both the teacher and student to visualize the nasopharynx at the same time. Currently, surgeons attempt to improve nasopharynx visualization by bending the mirror to improve the viewing angle and using anti-fog solution repeatedly throughout the procedure.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Approximately 50% of patients with obstructive sleep apnea have difficulty tolerating the most effective, first-line therapy, continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP), and other solutions such as mouthguards and surgery have lower efficacy and higher costs and risks. Patients struggle to adhere to CPAP therapy due to the noise, discomfort of the mask, and lack of portability during travel. A solution to treat obstructive sleep apnea that is lower cost and promotes greater adherence would improve management of obstructive sleep apnea.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Treatment decisions in Critical Care are made based on readings from external transducers that are manually leveled (by eye or by leveler) to the phlebostatic axis. A clinician may level the external transducer 2-3x per hour based on patient activity or questionable readings. CathAlign combines a novel sensing solution with ehanced transducer attachement safety features to improve nursing workflow and reduce avoidable hospital errors.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Patients with terminal heart disease may be implanted with a left ventricular assist device (LVAD), which allows hospital discharge with an acceptable quality of life while awaiting a donor heart to become available or for destination therapy. Prevailing technology for LVAD uses continuous flow centrifugal pumps to provide circulatory support. Careful monitoring of blood pressure in LVAD patients is essential to reduce complications associated with LVADs. However, the non-pulsatile blood flow dynamics of these LVADs confounds accurate blood pressure measurement and cannot be performed using commercially available non-invasive blood pressure sphygmomanometers alone. DopCuff integrates doppler and automated cuff technology into a single blood pressure measuring device that is user-friendly and accurate for outpatient use in LVAD patients to satisfy a significant unmet clinical need for this growing population of patients and their caretakers. 

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Epidural blocks are placed daily in hospitals to relieve the pain of childbirth or to limit pain during surgery. Placing an epidural is typically performed in a “blinded” manner without knowing exactly how deep and at what angle the epidural needle has to be inserted into the back to gain access to the epidural space. Inaccurate needle placement can result in severe spinal headache, nerve damage, paralysis, pain or any combination of the above. By providing the angle of needle entry and axial pressure exerted on the needle during the procedure, EpiSense allows anesthesiology trainees to reliably and safely administer epidural anesthesia.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Many medications are known to prolong the QTc interval, which is a marker for the potential of ventricular arrhythmia and a risk of sudden death. The QTc represents electrical depolarization and polarization of the ventricles and is measured with full EKG measurements, which is time-consuming and costly. As a result, the QTc is not monitored as closely as recommended. InstaQTc is a simple hand-held device that provides the QTc interval using only 3 electrodes, thereby enabling clinicians to efficiently monitor patients at risk for prolonged QTc interval.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Patients undergoing surgery are at high risk for injury related to their positioning. Prolonged periods of anesthesia in unnatural positions place nerve and other vital structures at risk, since the patient cannot move to relieve this pressure. This novel solution combines pressure mapping and localized inflation to allow for semi-automatic cushioning and positioning of surgical patients to reduce risk for patients in the prone position (patient lying on their stomach) during operations.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

The Seldinger technique is used place a central venous catheter (or central line) in a large vein, and starts with a guidewire being held in place with a finger until a catheter is threaded into position. In the event of a stressful emergency, distractions may lead to loss of the guidewire, either by falling out of place, or in the worst-case scenario, the guidewire slips into the patient. This unique modification to existing wires not only prevents guidewire from slipping into the patient to prevent a serious safety event, but also circumvents the need to retrain physicians.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) compromise provider care and treatment, add to unreimbursed financial burden, and could lead to life-threatening events. While all items and surfaces in the clinical care setting need to be wiped down with germicidal wipes, the wipes are a challenge to dispense and the dispensers themselves are often covered in pathogens. SaniClaw is a disposable claw that assists in threading the initial wipe and was designed with key features to prevent accumulation of pathogens on the dispenser and ultimately curb the incidence of infections.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Approximately 14.5 million orally invasive imaging procedures such as endoscopy, echocardiography, and bronchoscopy are performed annually in the U.S. A bite block is a single-use medical device designed to keep the mouth open during such imaging procedures. Unfortunately, commercially available products suffer from structural and/or material challenges that tend to result in unwanted complications such as patient injury (i.e. the bite block is too stiff and injures patient’s teeth) and equipment damage (i.e. the bite block gets dislodged and the patient bites down on the imaging device). BIBLOC is a redesigned bite block that is the result of numerous design iterations each taking into account surveys from various stakeholders and material properties testing. BIBLOC is an easily securable bite block providing dual protection of both the patient and the imaging equipment.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Resource-limited countries have a stillbirth rate that is approximately 10 times greater than that of developed countries. One in four of these stillbirths, along with newborn deaths in resource-limited countries, can be attributed to oxygen deprivation during labor and delivery. The continuous monitoring of fetal heart rate and maternal uterine contractions is essential for diagnosing such fetal distress early on. To satisfy the unique needs of hospitals in resource-limited settings, this low-cost, consumables-free solution of continuous monitoring of fetal well-being utilizes an electrocardiogram to detect fetal and maternal heart rates, as well as an electromyogram to measure the uterine muscle contractions.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Nearly 10,000 patients are diagnosed with T4 oral cancer of the lower jaw each year in the U.S. To treat this aggressive form of cancer, the fibula bone is removed from the patient’s leg and reconstructed to replace the affected mandible. The current technique used to reconstruct the mandible from the fibula utilizes tongue depressors to measure and notate where the fibula ought to be cut -- a tedious and time-consuming process for a procedure that can take up to 12 hours to complete and can cost upwards of $100,000. FlushCut is a tool that can be used to aid in the precise cutting of the fibula with three degrees of angular and linear freedom.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Pediatric urinary incontinence (UI), involuntary emptying of the bladder, affects more than 20-million people in the U.S., and 1 in 10 children will suffer from UI. In children with persistent UI that has not responded to conservative management and other directed therapies, an alternative form of treatment that has been shown to be very effective is biofeedback, or pelvic muscle floor training via the use of electrodes to measure muscle activity and provide feedback on the contraction and relaxation of the muscles. However, because these biofeedback devices are currently limited to clinical use, the outcome from biofeedback depends on the family's ability to travel to the hospital, pay for the therapy, and motivation of both the family and the child to participate in the unmonitored home-based training. This in-home biofeedback solution offers a creative in-home, mobile-based solution to clinical biofeedback with the use of electromyography with wireless transfer to a game-based biofeedback app specialized for children.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

The proper administration of insulin is imperative for the nearly 422 million adults worldwide that are affected by diabetes. Older populations of diabetes patients are twice as likely to suffer from vision impairment compared to younger patients, and are also more susceptible to dexterity challenges. To address the needs of diabetes patients with limited vision and/or dexterity, Load-a-Dose features an automated insulin loading mechanism, with audio and visual feedback.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Bladder cancer is the sixth most common and most expensive cancer to manage in the U.S. The primary method for bladder cancer diagnosis is via cystoscopy, the visual imaging of the bladder by insertion of a scope with a camera through the urethra by a trained urologist. With less than 12,000 urologists in the U.S., there is an immense lack of access for cystoscopy procedures in rural areas. The tele-cystoscopy solution aims to lower the operating skill threshold, decrease procedure costs, and increase accessibility of cystoscopies with semi-automated rotation and bending of the scope, as well as continuous video capture and stitching of images to provide urologists with a view of the entire bladder.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Continuous bladder irrigation (CBI) is a process in which a nurse flushes saline through the bladder in order to wash out blood and prevent clotting after urologic surgeries. If a clot forms, it can make it impossible for the patient to urinate and lead to an extended hospital stay. CBI is performed on more than 150,000 patients per year in the U.S, but it is a manual process that requires a high level of monitoring from a nurse. This CBI device automates the process by detecting the level of blood in urine and managing saline inflow accordingly.

The ACBI team won the JARL award in 2017 and the Fenwick & West third place prize in 2018 at the Hollomon Health Innovation Challenge.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death among people over 40. The treatment for cardiac arrest is CPR or defibrillation. The trick is to catch cardiac arrest quickly in order to treat the patient immediately, because the mortality rate for cardiac arrest victims increases by 10% for every minute that action is not taken. To monitor for cardiac arrest, EKG machines or SPO2 monitors are used, but these devices exhibit inaccuracies. This new cardiac arrest monitoring device uses ultrasound Doppler technology to monitor the carotid artery, which allows for quick and accurate recognition of cardiac arrest.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

An enteroatmospheric fistula (EAF) is a hole between the gastrointestinal tract and an unhealed wound, and thus the open air. Between 1,000 and 4,000 cases occur annually in the United States, with a mortality rate of over 40%. EAF leak interstitial fluid into the wound, which hampers the healing process. Current methods to heal the abdominal wounds surrounding EAF are time consuming to install and don’t last long. This fistula isolation device is easy to install, stays in place once installed thanks to the silicone microbeads that fill it, and allows fluid to flow out of the body without irritating the wound bed.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Over 200,000 IV catheters are placed daily in the United States; however, there is a 50% fail rate for correctly placing the catheter on the first needlestick. Healthcare students need to be able to train to place IVs, but existing arm trainers lack anatomical and physiological accuracy. As a consequence, students resort to practicing on other students or on patients, which poses an infection risk. This new arm trainer has a unique four-layer tissue and rolling vein behavior that provide the most realistic training experience possible for students.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Traumatic dental injuries are costly and have life-long consequences, but they can be prevented by wearing a mouthguard. Existing mouthguard solutions that can be worn by people with braces are bulky and uncomfortable, and they can make breathing and speaking difficult. This discomfort leads athletes to avoid the use of mouthguards, which makes them susceptible to injury. The Mouthshield is an adaptive braces mouthguard that is low profile and comfortable to wear, while still protecting the wearer from dental injuries.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Venous ulcers, which affect 1% of the adult population, are painful open sores that occur when veins are unable to correctly pump blood out of the leg and fluid pools. Compression is the most common form of treatment, but compression bandages are applied by clinicians to ensure proper fit, are not reusable, and must be replaced weekly. Some current compression devices don’t require a clinician to apply, but they are not usable by low strength or limited mobility patients. This new compression device is easily applied and adjusted, using a Boa Technology knob and wire system, and includes an active pressure feedback system to optimize healing.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Anaphylaxis is an acute, severe, and potentially life-threatening allergic reaction. A single shot of epinephrine can dramatically improve outcomes for anaphylaxis; however, epinephrine auto injectors can cost hundreds of dollars are not readily available in low- and middle-income countries. EpiForAll is an affordable epinephrine auto-injector used to treat anaphylaxis. EpiForAll revolutionizes auto-injectors by using readily available, low cost epinephrine ampules. EpiForAll won the 2017 Hollomon Health Innovation Challenge and continues to be developed at UW.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Gastrostomy tubes (g-tubes) enable patients to receive adequate nutrition who otherwise could not. G-tubes that are placed through the skin percutaneously have a tendency to dislodge, necessitating an unanticipated and expensive clinical procedure. This new g-tube design can be placed percutaneously and has improved retention. The resulting g-tube design features a bell that crushes for easy insertion and then inverts to provide superior retention.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Elderly patients with glaucoma may have problems dispensing eye drop medications due to physical limitations. MistEase is an eye drop assistant device that makes it easier to apply eye drops. The slender, ergonomic design of MistEase fits comfortably against the average person’s facial contours so the medication can be properly aligned to the eye, and the trigger design allows patients to effortlessly actuate the spray with reduced input force.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Patients who have undergone gastrointestinal stoma formation surgery are at high risk for parastomal hernias. Specially designed support belts help prevent patients from forming hernias, but existing belts are ineffective, uncomfortable, and difficult to don. This improved hernia support harness is easy to use and stays in place when the wearer moves. A foam disk on the inside of the belt distributes the force on the abdomen, and the wearer can adjust the force applied to hernia-risk regions with the simple turn of a dial. The prototype development of this project continues and human subject studies are soon underway.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Catheterized individuals are at risk for hematuria, the presence of blood in urine; however, there is no consistent way to measure or communicate the severity of hematuria. PeePal is a small device that clips onto a catheter outflow tube and displays the blood volume fraction in the urine, using spectroscopy to measure specific wavelengths and provide blood absorbance information.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Children with gait disorders tend to spend limited time walking outside of physical therapy, which can slow their rehabilitation rate. PlayGait is a pediatric exoskeleton that helps children with gait disorders walk more, so they can establish efficient gait patterns and reduce their rehabilitation time.

Since completing EIH, the PlayGait team has received grant funding for further research and development and has filed for a patent through UW CoMotion. PlayGait won third place at the 2017 Hollomon Health Innovation Challenge and is a semifinalist in the 2017 Business Plan Competition. The PlayGait team is currently preparing to test with patients and is planning for a controlled initial product release in 2018.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

People with limited mobility due to neurological disorders are commonly prescribed rocker sole orthoses to improve walking ability and encourage a natural walking motion. The current process for making rocker soles is costly and time-consuming due to the iterative nature of determining the optimal rocker shape. Sole Train is a rocker sole that features a PVC cushion that can be easily adjusted before the air is evacuated from the cushion, leaving a rigid sole that can withstand the forces of walking.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Falling is the sixth leading cause of death for individuals over 65. Four-wheeled walkers help reduce falls if they are used properly; however, accidents are frequent when individuals move down hill or transition from sitting to using the walker. Many individuals who have been prescribed walkers abandon them because their walker is not meeting their needs. Walk 'n' Roll is an improved walker solution that addresses the ergonomic and safety concerns that contribute to walker disuse and frequent accidents. Walk 'n' Roll promotes proper posture, decreases wrist pain, and features speed control and advanced stability control.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

During emergency situations, it is important to measure blood clot strength in patients with trauma-induced coagulopathy (TIC), a condition where the blood’s ability to stop bleeding by forming clots is impaired. Healthcare providers need to be able to determine the ideal applied blood pressure to mitigate the effects of TIC. This point-of-care diagnostic device can measure clot failure pressure on-the-go in emergency situations. This project continued as a research project in the lab of Dr. Nathan White.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Lung biopsies are performed to diagnose lung cancer; however, biopsy needles can cause pneumothorax (collapsed lungs) due to positive pressure in the space between the lung and the chest wall. This needle includes a vacuum port to suck out the air leaked into this space and prevent pneumothorax. The vacuum remains in place after the biopsy to ensure the lung stays expanded during healing.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Thousands of infants require oxygen after birth each year. The most common and secure way to provide assistance is intubation, where a tube is passed through the vocal cords into the trachea to provide a secure airway to deliver oxygen using a mechanical ventilator. It is difficult to intubate neonates because of the size and position of their vocal cords. Laryngeal mask airways (LMA) are more easily placed than intubation tubes; however, they are not considered a secure airway that can be used for extended periods. The Neonatal Intubating Laryngeal Mask Airway device can be quickly placed to provide life-saving oxygen to a newborn and then can be simply transformed to a secure intubation tube with no interruption in oxygen flow.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Septic shock is a significant cause of mortality in low and middle income countries. Capillary refill time (CRT) is the time required for natural color to return to the skin after pressure is applied to induce blanching (whitening). CRT measures perfusion, the body's ability to supply blood to vital organs. CRT has been shown to correlate well with early indicators of septic shock. This device uses the camera and processing power of a mobile phone to easily and accurately measure CRT.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

The prosthesis socket used by trans-tibial amputees compresses the residual limb. When the prosthesis wearer walks, the same force that keeps the prosthetic socket in place squeezes the limb, causing the residual limb to shrink in volume. This decrease in volume results in an uncomfortable, ill-fitting socket. This advanced prosthetic socket has a clamshell design that allows wearers to remove the back-half of the prosthetic, without removing the entire prosthetic, which encourages residual limb volume recovery.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Delirium is a common condition in critical care patients. Delirious patients may engage in harmful behavior, pulling out their medical lines or acting aggressively toward healthcare professionals. This delirious patient mitt can be fitted on patients and prevents them from engaging in harmful behavior. The mitt is comfortable and reusable, and it allows nurses easy access to patients' IV sites.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Lung biopsies are necessary to diagnose lung cancer, but biopsy methods vary in their invasiveness. To access tumor biopsy samples in peripheral regions of the lungs, healthcare professionals must insert a needle through the chest wall instead of using a less-invasive transbronchial method. This flexible biopsy needle allows healthcare professionals to access hard-to-reach tumors via a less invasive bronchoscope.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Patients with heart disease who are unable to undergo open-heart surgery can instead be treated with a minimally invasive, catheter-based surgery. In this surgery, a clip device is maneuvered via a catheter into the compromised heart valve, but it is difficult to maneuver the clip within the dynamic environment of the heart. Heart Anchors are an inflatable balloon stability system that guides clip equipment and makes it easier to place the clip within the valve.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants

Patients who need to be airlifted to treatment can become injured in stretcher accidents during transport. Reducing the number of times a patient needs to be transferred between stretchers during transport could lessen the number of medical air transport injuries. RAPTER, or Remote Access Patient Transfer, is a patient loading system that provides a smoother and safer method for transporting stretchers.

Engineering team

Clinicians & consultants