An implanted antenna system for the monitoring of the healing of bone fractures

Review on Medical Implantable Antenna Technology and Imminent Research Challenges

“…The healing process of a fractured bone is a problematic biological process, and it requires continuous observation with mechanical support for the re-establishment of a fractured bone in its natural condition. The fractured bone restoration process varies between several weeks depending on age, the number of fractures, and bone location [ 81 ]. An implantable antenna with a bone healing mechanical system would be an excellent solution for continuous observation of fractured bones.…”

“…In [ 81 ], an implant antenna system with two monopole antennas attached with a metal plate was proposed to observe the fractured bone restoration process. An artificial fracture bone phantom system where two monopole antennas were placed on both sides of the fracture is shown in Figure 13 .…”

Design and characterization of a three material anatomical bone phantom for implanted antenna applications

“…It is important to mention that oil will not mix in water because water molecules form a polar covalent bond and oil molecules have non-covalent bonds. In order to mix oil and water, a detergent containing surfactants is required for the reduction of the tension between molecules [16]. The detergent used for these measurements contained 15 -30% anionic surfactants and 5 -15% nonanionic surfactants.…”

Characterisation of an antenna system implanted into a limb phantom for monitoring of bone fracture healing

“…A gap of 2mm to assure that there will be no contact between the groundplanes in future measurements was selected. The distance between the monopoles was 2cm as it was found in previous research to be the optimal distance for proper communication within the fracture [21]. For the simulations a three layer coaxial limb phantom was used consisting of bone marrow, bone cortical and muscle tissues.…”

“…The biological process of fracture healing is a complicated process that if not monitored and evaluated continuously the first 4 weeks after the trauma, often leads to failure of bone restoration to its pre fractured state [19]. Healing depends, amongst others, on the number of discrete fractures, the type of bone and the patient's age and gender [20], [21]. The proposed antenna system could provide doctors with continuous information regarding the state of the fractured bone, reducing the required x-rays and CT scanning.…”