WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — A Purdue University researcher in the College of Engineering and his collaborators in the Indiana University School of Medicine have received federal funding to develop their patent-pending, noninvasive device that continuously monitors for autonomic dysreflexia, or AD.
AD is a life-threatening condition that usually develops after a spinal cord injury at or above the T6 vertebra. According to the Cleveland Clinic, around 17,000 Americans each year experience a spinal cord injury. Up to 70% of people with a spinal cord injury above the T6 vertebra develop AD.
The $1.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense’s Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP) will advance testing the device in human participants with spinal cord injuries who experience AD. In tests of rodents with spinal cord injuries, the system rapidly detected AD with 93.4% accuracy. In tests of humans with chronic spinal cord injuries, AD was confirmed with 94.1% accuracy.
Bradley Duerstock, professor of practice in the Edwardson School of Industrial Engineering and the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, has collaborated on the device with IU School of Medicine’s Thomas Everett, associate professor of medicine and investigator in the school’s Krannert Cardiovascular Research Center, and Dr. Matthew Mellon, associate professor of urology.
Research has been published in the peer-reviewed journals Military Medicine, Frontiers in Neuroinformatics, IEEE Journal of Translational Engineering in Health and Medicine, Neurotrauma Reports, and Scientific Reports.
Duerstock disclosed the AD monitoring device to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization, which has applied for a patent to protect the intellectual property. Industry partners interested in further developing the innovation should contact Patrick Finnerty, senior business development and licensing manager — life sciences, at pwfinnerty@prf.org, about track code 69526.
The device, the grant and clinical testing
Medical professionals traditionally use blood pressure monitoring to diagnose AD.
“This method is impractical for continuous monitoring because it restricts a person’s activities and can be affected by movements like propelling a wheelchair or transferring into or out of one,” Duerstock said.
The noninvasive device developed by Duerstock, Everett and Mellon detects AD using sensors and controllers. It measures the heart’s electrical activity, skin nerve activity, galvanic skin response and skin temperature. It can be integrated onto a wearable device.
“The device extracts features from the measurements and classifies them to identify the onset of AD using a machine learning model,” Duerstock said. “Upon detecting AD, the device notifies the subject and their caregiver or medical professional.”
The $1.5 million award is the second that the researchers have received through the CDMRP.
“We had developed our prototype device using rodent studies and current preclinical testing in human participants at IU Health Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis,” Duerstock said.
Mellon said, “This second grant allows us to expand our trials to home testing and offer this resource to individuals who may have mobility and transportation challenges that limit access to medical services.”
Questions about participating in the clinical tests of the wearable device for everyday use can be addressed to Duerstock at bsd@purdue.edu.
About autonomic dysreflexia
When the body senses a painful or stressful stimulus below the level of a spinal cord injury, it may trigger AD, although this stimulus may not be felt by the individual. During AD, the body responds by constricting the blood vessels in the lower part of the body, causing a rapid increase in blood pressure.
AD episodes increase the risk of stroke by 300%-400% and can occur up to 40 times per day. Patients and their caregivers manage most episodes by themselves by finding and mitigating the source of the noxious stimulus. Medical professionals may rarely see life-threatening AD episodes, which means they could be unfamiliar with early recognition or protocols for immediate treatment.
“Many AD episodes are unrecognized by the individual themselves, leading to chronic health deterioration,” Mellon said.
About Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization
The Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization operates one of the most comprehensive technology transfer programs among leading research universities in the U.S. Services provided by this office support the economic development initiatives of Purdue University and benefit the university’s academic activities through commercializing, licensing and protecting Purdue intellectual property. In fiscal year 2024, the office reported 145 deals finalized with 224 technologies signed, 466 invention disclosures received, and 290 U.S. and international patents received. The office is managed by the Purdue Research Foundation, a private, nonprofit foundation created to advance the mission of Purdue University. Contact otcip@prf.org for more information.
About Purdue University
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