A New Neuro-Muscular Stimulation System for the Treatment of Chronic Wounds

这个项目将着眼于创造一种治疗慢性伤口的新方法的可能性。这是一个普遍存在的问题，估计在任何时候都会影响到世界上4000万人。几十年来，治疗方法一直没有改变，依靠专家在伤口上贴上加压绷带。对于大多数人来说，这些衣服穿起来很不舒服，即使是训练有素的专业人士也很难穿上。正因为如此，许多患者摘掉绷带，伤口需要更长的时间才能愈合(6个月到一年)，根本不会愈合，或者再次出现。我们已经发明了一种位于膝盖后部的小型设备，它向腿部的一条神经发送温和的电脉冲。这会导致肌肉抽搐，腿部血液流动。我们已经在一些案例研究中测试了这种效果，发现拒绝愈合的严重伤口加速了愈合。然而，该设备是为短期使用而设计的，以防止医院手术后形成血栓，并被设计为使用数小时，而不是治疗伤口所需的数天和数周。这个项目将调查是否有可能创造一种专门为治疗伤口而设计的新设备，这种设备将在治疗伤口所需的更长时间内粘在患者身上--而不会刺激皮肤--而且患者自己可以很容易地适应和调整。然后，我们将进行临床试验，在伤口患者身上测试这种新设备，看看它是否比绷带更好。

This project will look at the possibility of creating a new way to treat Chronic Wounds. These are a widespread problem and affect an estimated 40 million people in the world at any one time. Treatment has not changed for many decades and relies upon a specialist applying a compression bandage over the wound. These are uncomfortable to wear, for the vast majority of people, and are very difficult to fit even for well-trained professionals. Because of this, many patients remove their bandages and wounds take much longer to heal (6 months to a year) do not heal at all, or reappear. We have invented a small device that sits on the back of the knee and sends gentle electrical pulses to a nerve in the leg. This causes muscles to twitch and blood to flow in the leg. We have tested this effect in a number of case studies and found accelerated healing with serious wounds that had refused to heal. However, the device was designed for short term use to prevent blood clots from forming following operations in hospital and is designed to be used for hours not the days and weeks that would be needed to treat wounds. This project will investigate whether it is possible to create a new device specifically designed to treat wounds, that will that will stick to the patient for the much longer times needed to treat wounds - without irritating the skin - and that the patient themselves can fit and adjust easily. We will then conduct clinical trials to test the new device on wound patients to see if it performs better than bandages.