Biomedical Textiles Signify Breakthrough in Healthcare Management

Biomedical textiles that enable the autonomy and mobility of patients while wirelessly monitoring their vital signs hold huge potential across different application segments. These are the latest findings of Frost & Sullivan (Mountain View, CA, USA), an international market research firm.

The combination of health monitoring devices with textiles carries the benefits of patient safety, enhanced comfort to users, and undisputed economic viability. As a result, research groups around the world are developing textiles that are adaptable to different bodily fluids and chronic disease profiles, wherein the textile itself acts as the biosensor, providing diagnostic information that improves early detection rates, as well as cost-effective ambulatory care to patients with chronic disorders.

The main challenge underlying the development of biomedical textiles lays in realizing its intended potential, but with the accelerated pace of innovation in the device industry, textile engineers are validating their findings on woven structures, allowing them to expand their design portfolio to incorporate performance characteristics. But careful consideration is required when designing smart textile products to ensure the inclusion of smart fabric components does not push the price point of wearable clothing beyond the reach of everyday consumers.

One of the major drives for the adoption of biomedical textiles comes from the fact that both end-users and medical professionals alike are stressing novel monitoring approaches that reduce the risks associated with diabetes, cardiac arrest, hypertension, and stroke, among others. Wearable textiles allow for the monitoring of patients constantly, which creates the impetus for creating smarter and intelligent textiles. The resulting miniaturization of various systems and the issue of biocompatibility of fabrics across bodily fluids have driven various corporate and research lab innovations to arise in this segment.

“Extensive research efforts are being put towards developing effective integration techniques that amalgamate ideal biosensors into textile materials. This step requires expertise in the fields of materials, electronics, and textiles,” said Frost & Sullivan industry analyst Prasanna Vadhana Kannan. “The increasing health awareness and patient focus has shifted towards prevention, allowing monitoring to emerge as a major driving force for the biomedical textiles industry. The plethora of applications continues to increase in diversity with new innovations."

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