Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.
Querrey Simpson Institute for Bioelectronics, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.
Sci Adv. 2024 Oct 25;10(43):eadr3567. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adr3567. Epub 2024 Oct 23.
Opioid overdose accounts for nearly 75,000 deaths per year in the United States, now a leading cause of mortality among young people aged 18 to 45 years. At overdose levels, opioid-induced respiratory depression becomes fatal without the administration of naloxone within minutes. Currently, overdose survival relies on bystander intervention, requiring a nearby person to find the overdosed individual and have immediate access to naloxone to administer. To circumvent the bystander requirement, we developed the Naloximeter: a class of life-saving implantable devices that autonomously detect and treat overdose while simultaneously contacting first responders. We present three Naloximeter platforms, for fundamental research and clinical translation, all equipped with optical sensors, drug delivery mechanisms, and a supporting ecosystem of technology to counteract opioid-induced respiratory depression. In small and large animal studies, the Naloximeter rescues from otherwise fatal opioid overdose within minutes. This work introduces life-changing, clinically translatable technologies that can broadly benefit a susceptible population recovering from opioid use disorder.
在美国，阿片类药物过量导致的死亡人数每年近 75000 人，现已成为 18 至 45 岁年轻人的主要死亡原因。在过量用药的情况下，阿片类药物引起的呼吸抑制，如果不在数分钟内给予纳洛酮，将导致死亡。目前，过量用药的生存依赖于旁观者干预，需要附近的人找到过量用药的人，并立即获得纳洛酮进行给药。为了规避旁观者的要求，我们开发了纳洛测仪：一类救生植入式设备，可在自主检测和治疗过量用药的同时，与急救人员取得联系。我们展示了三种纳洛测仪平台，用于基础研究和临床转化，都配备了光学传感器、药物输送机制，以及一套对抗阿片类药物引起的呼吸抑制的技术支持系统。在小型和大型动物研究中，纳洛测仪可在数分钟内挽救致命的阿片类药物过量用药。这项工作引入了改变生活、具有临床转化潜力的技术，可以广泛使从阿片类药物使用障碍中康复的易感人群受益。
