Impedance-based Diagnostic Devices

Percutanueous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty §(PTCA) is a procedure used in modern medicine to §treat atherosclerotic plaque. Regretfully, not all §types of plaque are good candidates for this type of §procedure. If treated by PTCA, unstable plaque §could cause complications and lead to patients re-§hospitalization or even death. This book focuses §on the design of an impedance-based §device to diagnose unstable plaque. The proposed §system consists of an array of active §miniaturized piezoelectric sensors mounted on §a smart angioplasty balloon and controlled by a §computer. A large scale smart balloon, and the §manufacturing steps to miniaturize the device §are outlined. Numerical simulations and in vitro §tests clearly show that unstable plaque can be §diagnosed using the approach. Finally, examples of §the use of a smart balloon device to induce cell §apoptosis, and the possibility to design impedance-§based devices for prostate cancer diagnosis are§addressed. This book is particularly recommended for §students and medical device professionals interested §in learning hands-on the design and developing §process for novel diagnostic devices.