Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Berkeley Sensor and Actuator Center, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA.
Nat Commun. 2021 Mar 23;12(1):1823. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-22109-z.
The body naturally and continuously secretes sweat for thermoregulation during sedentary and routine activities at rates that can reflect underlying health conditions, including nerve damage, autonomic and metabolic disorders, and chronic stress. However, low secretion rates and evaporation pose challenges for collecting resting thermoregulatory sweat for non-invasive analysis of body physiology. Here we present wearable patches for continuous sweat monitoring at rest, using microfluidics to combat evaporation and enable selective monitoring of secretion rate. We integrate hydrophilic fillers for rapid sweat uptake into the sensing channel, reducing required sweat accumulation time towards real-time measurement. Along with sweat rate sensors, we integrate electrochemical sensors for pH, Cl, and levodopa monitoring. We demonstrate patch functionality for dynamic sweat analysis related to routine activities, stress events, hypoglycemia-induced sweating, and Parkinson's disease. By enabling sweat analysis compatible with sedentary, routine, and daily activities, these patches enable continuous, autonomous monitoring of body physiology at rest.
人体在静息和日常活动中会通过出汗来调节体温,这是一种自然且持续的过程,出汗率可以反映出潜在的健康状况,包括神经损伤、自主和代谢紊乱以及慢性压力等。然而,低分泌率和蒸发会给收集静息时的热调节汗液带来挑战,因为这些汗液无法用于非侵入性的生理分析。在这里,我们提出了一种可穿戴贴片,用于在静息状态下进行连续汗液监测,该贴片使用微流控技术来对抗蒸发,并实现分泌率的选择性监测。我们将亲水填充剂集成到传感通道中,以实现快速吸收汗液,从而减少实时测量所需的汗液积累时间。除了汗液速率传感器,我们还集成了电化学传感器,用于监测 pH 值、Cl 和左旋多巴。我们展示了与日常活动、应激事件、低血糖引起的出汗和帕金森病相关的动态汗液分析的贴片功能。通过使汗液分析与静息、日常和日常活动兼容,这些贴片能够实现对身体生理的连续自主监测。