Exploring the potential of sweat for health monitoring
Sevda Malek Kani defended her PhD thesis at the Department of Mechanical Engineering on January 26th.
Our bodies are complex systems that constantly change and adapt. To understand the signals they give us and monitor our health, many different tests are used. For example, blood and urine samples can be analyzed, and heart rate or blood pressure is often measured at a doctor鈥檚 office. But what if we could monitor our health in a non鈥慽nvasive way, without needles, collecting samples, or visiting the doctor? What if a small device worn on the skin could collect our sweat and tell us, in real time, what is happening inside our bodies? In her PhD research, Sevda Malek Kani explores the potential of using sweat for health monitoring.
Sweat is a rich biological fluid that contains many different components, such as salts, metabolites, and proteins. These components can reveal valuable information about our health. However, using sweat for this purpose is not simple. The amount of sweat we produce, especially when we are at rest, is very small and the components in sweat are often present in very tiny amounts. In addition, we still do not fully understand what each substance indicates or how its levels change when we are unwell. addresses these challenges in her research, bringing us closer to a future where sweat sensing could become part of everyday life.
Developing a sweat sensing device
First, Kani studied sensor technologies capable of measuring substances such as sodium and creatinine in sweat. She then investigated inflammatory markers, molecules that can provide clues about inflammation or allergic reactions. Finally, she developed a small device that can collect tiny droplets of sweat from the forearm and transport them through sensors for analysis.
Future use
This research is a step towards using small, wearable devices to monitor our health on a daily basis. Such devices could one day be integrated in smartwatches, allowing them not only to show heartbeat but also to indicate whether we are stressed, fighting a flu, or have consumed too much sugar. In hospitals, sweat sensing could help nurses monitor patients continuously and be alerted quickly if someone鈥檚 condition starts to worsen.
Title of PhD thesis: . Supervisors: Prof. Jaap den Toonder and Prof. Massimo Mischi.