SBIR Phase I: A novel, microfluidic device to improve collection and analysis of biopsy samples from ocular paracentesis

这项小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是通过更好的眼液活检工具来改善眼病的诊断。眼液活检在诊断和治疗中很重要，但由于目前收集液体的方法存在缺陷，这一程序未得到充分利用；此外，眼睛里的液体与身体的其他部分是隔离的，所以血液检查对诊断没有帮助。正因为如此，大多数眼部感染的诊断和治疗都是基于其临床表现，而没有来自液体检测的额外数据。本研究将为安全有效地采集眼液提供一种新的工具。这将有助于诊断包括黄斑变性、青光眼和眼部感染在内的视力威胁疾病，从而实现早期诊断并改善患者预后。这个小企业创新研究（SBIR） I项目将推进一种用于眼部液体活检的新型医疗设备。眼液活检可用于眼睛感染以外的情况。拟议的仪器将专门设计用于从眼睛前部收集液体。任务包括：(1)优化针头，减小入针力，增强外科医生的控制能力，降低损伤风险；(2)研究流体动力学的收集与集成的微流体室和专门的收集系统，设计用于处理小流体体积，因为目前的方法导致流体损失和不准确的结果。额外的工作将评估先进的工程特征，以提高该过程的安全性。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to improve diagnosis of eye conditions with a better tool for ocular fluid biopsies. Ocular fluid biopsies are important in diagnosis and treatment, but this procedure is under-utilized due to flaws with the current method for collecting fluid; furthermore, the fluid in the eye is isolated from the rest of the body, so blood work does not help in diagnosis. Because of this, most ocular infections are diagnosed and treated based on their clinical appearance without additional data from fluid testing. This research will advance a new tool to collect ocular fluid safely and effectively. This will aid in diagnosis of sight-threatening conditions including macular degeneration, glaucoma and ocular infections, enabling earlier diagnosis and improving patient outcomes.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) I Project will advance a new medical device for ocular fluid biopsies. Ocular fluid biopsies can be used for conditions beyond infections in the eye. The proposed instrument will be designed specifically for collection of fluid from the front of the eye. Tasks include: (1) optimization of the needle to decrease the force of entry to enhance the surgeon’s control and decrease risk of injury; (2) investigation of the fluid dynamics of collection with the integration of a microfluidic chamber and specialized collection system designed to handle small fluid volumes because the current method leads to fluid loss and inaccurate results. Additional work will evaluate advanced engineering features to enhance safety for this procedure.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.