Uploaded June 2021 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
A team of engineers and clinicians has developed an ultra-thin, inflatable device that can be used to treat the most severe forms of pain without the need for invasive surgery: eng.cam.ac.uk/news/inflatable-shape-changing-spinal-implants-could-help-treat-severe-pain
The device is so thin – about the width of a human hair – that it can be rolled up into a tiny cylinder, inserted into a needle, and implanted into the #epidural space of the spinal column. Once correctly positioned, the device is inflated with water or air so that it unrolls like a tiny air mattress, covering a large section of the #SpinalCord. When connected to a pulse generator, the ultra-thin electrodes start sending small electrical currents to the spinal cord, which disrupt #PainSignals.
A team of engineers and clinicians has developed an ultra-thin, inflatable device that can be used to treat the most severe forms of pain without the need for invasive surgery: eng.cam.ac.uk/news/inflatable-shape-changing-spinal-implants-could-help-treat-severe-pain
The device is so thin – about the width of a human hair – that it can be rolled up into a tiny cylinder, inserted into a needle, and implanted into the #epidural space of the spinal column. Once correctly positioned, the device is inflated with water or air so that it unrolls like a tiny air mattress, covering a large section of the #SpinalCord. When connected to a pulse generator, the ultra-thin electrodes start sending small electrical currents to the spinal cord, which disrupt #PainSignals.
