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Recent advances in skin-interfaced wearable sweat sensors enable the noninvasive, real-time monitoring of biochemical signals associated with health and wellness. These wearable platforms leverage microfluidic channels, biochemical sensors, and flexible electronics to enable the continuous analysis of sweat-based biomarkers such as electrolytes, metabolites, and hormones. As this field continues to mature, the potential of low-cost, continuous personalized health monitoring enabled by such wearable sensors holds significant promise for addressing some of the formidable obstacles to delivering comprehensive medical care in under-resourced settings. This Perspective highlights the transformative potential of wearable sweat sensing for providing equitable access to cutting-edge healthcare diagnostics, especially in remote or geographically isolated areas. It examines the current understanding of sweat composition as well as recent innovations in microfluidic device architectures and sensing strategies by showcasing emerging applications and opportunities for innovation. It concludes with a discussion on expanding the utility of wearable sweat sensors for clinically relevant health applications and opportunities for enabling equitable access to innovation to address existing health disparities.
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Emerging Additive Manufacturing Methods for Wearable Sensors: Opportunities to Expand Access to Personalized Health Monitoring
Abstract Persistent disparities exist in access to state‐of‐the‐art healthcare disproportionately affecting underserved and vulnerable populations. Advances in wearable sensors enabled by additive manufacturing (AM) offer new opportunities to address such disparities and enhance equitable access advanced diagnostic technologies. Additive manufacturing provides a pathway to rapidly prototype bespoke, multifunctional wearable sensors thereby circumventing existing barriers to innovation for resource‐limited settings imposed by the need for specialized facilities, technical expertise, and capital‐intensive processes. This review examines recent progress in the additive manufacture of wearable platforms for physiological health monitoring. Supported by an initial overview of relevant techniques, representative examples of 3D printed wearable sensors highlight the potential for measuring clinically‐relevant biophysical and biochemical signals of interest. The review concludes with a discussion of the promise and utility of additive manufacturing for wearable sensors, emphasizing opportunities for expanding access to vital healthcare technology and addressing critical health disparities.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2240170
- PAR ID:
- 10482856
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Advanced Sensor Research
- Volume:
- 3
- Issue:
- 3
- ISSN:
- 2751-1219
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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