PFI-RP: Development of a Temperature-Sensitive, High-Adhesion Medical Tape for Reducing Pain, Skin Injury, and Dislodgement of Critical Devices for Children in Hospitals

这一创新-研究伙伴关系(PFI-RP)项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力是减少与医疗粘合剂相关的皮肤损伤和设备移位事件。医用粘合剂用于将伤口护理敷料和其他关键设备固定在皮肤上。虽然更强的粘合剂可以提供更高水平的安全性，但它们很难无痛地从皮肤上移除，并可能导致与医疗粘合剂相关的皮肤损伤，包括皮肤撕裂和感染风险增加。该项目将开发更高的粘附性医用胶带，从而可以减少粘附性，通过应用加热去除。这种轻松拆卸的能力将显著降低皮肤损伤和后续感染的风险，同时提供医院护理期间医疗器械牢固附着所需的高粘附性，减少设备移位事件并提高护理质量。如果成功，该解决方案将通过防止皮肤损伤和关键设备移位，每年节省超过10亿美元的医疗费用。该项目将在工业界的密切指导下，培训有前途的翻译创业技术专业人员。拟议的项目将提供对高附着力医用胶带所需的温度敏感型胶粘剂的化学和物理了解，这种胶粘剂可以避免胶带移除过程中的皮肤损伤和意外设备移位。目前的医用胶带没有温度敏感部件来实现更高的附着力和更容易的释放。最初的原型已经展示了一种具有相当大的温度响应性释放属性的胶带。充分了解这种释放的机制可能会影响刺激响应型粘合剂的发展，这种粘合剂可用于广泛的医疗和非医疗应用。该项目的主要目标如下：(A)获得释放机制的基本知识，(B)转移到大批量制造工艺以证明规模可行性，(C)通过几项试点研究验证这些大批量制造原型在储存后仍保持性能，(D)获得在附近儿童医院进行测试的批准，以及(E)培训有前途的创业和翻译团队科学方面的专业人员。该项目将促进在大批量制造环境中制造原型，这种环境将超过目前最先进的医用胶带。此外，高技能的新兴专业人员将接受从试点向大批量产品制造和包装过渡的培训。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势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 Partnerships for Innovation – Research Partnerships (PFI-RP) project is reducing medical adhesive related skin injuries and device dislodgement events. Medical adhesives are used to secure wound care dressings and other critical devices to the skin. Although stronger adhesives can provide a higher level of securement, they are difficult to painlessly remove from the skin and may cause medical-adhesive-related skin injuries, which include skin tears and an increased risk of infection. This project will develop higher adhesion medical tapes, whereby the adhesion can be reduced for removal with the application of heat. This ability to remove easily will significantly reduce the risk of skin injury and subsequent infections while simultaneously providing the high adhesion required for secure attachment of medical devices during hospital care, reducing device dislodgement events and improving the quality of care. If successful, this solution will save over $1 billion annually in healthcare by preventing skin injury and critical device dislodgement. The project will train promising technical professionals in translational entrepreneurship with close mentorship from industry. The proposed project will provide a chemical and physical understanding of temperature responsive adhesives required for high adhesion medical tape that can avoid both skin injury during tape removal and accidental device dislodgement. Current medical tapes do not have a temperature sensitive component to enable higher adhesion coupled with easier release. Initial prototypes have demonstrated an adhesive tape with a substantial temperature-responsive release attribute. Fully understanding the mechanism for this release could impact the development of stimuli-responsive adhesives that could be used for a wide range of medical and nonmedical applications. The major goals of this project are the following: (a) gain a fundamental knowledge of the release mechanism, (b) transfer to a high-volume manufacturing process to demonstrate scaling feasibility, (c) verify these high-volume manufacturing prototypes retain performance after storage with several pilot studies, (d) gain approval for testing in a nearby children’s hospital, and (e) train promising professionals in entrepreneurship and translational team science. This project will facilitate the fabrication of prototypes in a high-volume manufacturing environment that will outperform the current state-of-the-art medical tapes. In addition, highly skilled emerging professionals will receive training in the transition from pilot to high-volume product manufacturing and packaging.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.