Office of Commercialization and Economic Development
Office of Technology Commercialization

Life Sciences » Medical Devices

Found 17 technologies within Medical Devices RSS ATOM

Biologically Targeted Photo-Crosslinkable Nano-Patch to Prevent Postsurgical Peritoneal Adhesion

18-0101 – A biologically targeted, photo-crosslinkable nanopatch (pCNP) that prevents postsurgical adhesion has been developed. Peritoneal adhesion occurs in a majority of patients following abdominal surgery and can result in significant side effects and complications. Current strategies to minimize adhesions involve the use of nontargeted anatomical barriers that are either inefficient in protecting... Read More

Assessing Lower Extremity Movement Quality

18-0003 – Clinical assessment tools can provide a simple and efficient method for identifying problems in the musculoskeletal system that may result in athletic injury. Sports medicine clinicians can often use the results of such assessment tools to develop effective intervention programs for injury prevention and rehabilitation. This innovation provides an objective and autonomous system to classify... Read More

Osseous Distractor for Cranial Reconstruction

18-0065 – A novel device for osseous distraction has been invented. Current osseous distractors, particularly those for cranial reconstruction, can cause scarring, skin infections and wound breakdown. These complications are often responsible for treatment failure. UNC researchers have designed a novel device that can eliminate or negate most of these problems. This new distractor has a low profile in... Read More

Using phase-changing nanodroplets to dissolve blood clots with ultrasound

18-0123 – Thrombosis, or pathologic blood clot formation, causes many vascular diseases. UNC researchers have developed a new method for using ultrasound to dissolve blood clots which improves on existing thrombosis treatment practices. The technique combines ultrasound with use of nanodroplets which convert from liquid to gas when exposed to ultrasound energy. This phase change enhances the disruption... Read More

Long-acting injectable multipurpose implants for treatment of osteoporosis

18-0167 – Osteoporosis, a chronic disease associated with a decrease in bone strength and increase in bone fractures, leads to high rates of morbidity and mortality globally. UNC researchers have developed a novel long-acting, multipurpose implant as a treatment option for osteoporosis which is safer, more effective, and more versatile than current first-line therapies for osteoporosis which require... Read More

Side-car Bassinet to Improve Mother and Baby Development Post-delivery

17-0003 – A side-car bassinet particularly designed for U.S. maternity beds may improve mother-baby development post-delivery. The bassinet locks into maternity beds, when proximity to mother is warranted, but can be disengaged, and converted to a stand-alone bassinet. To promote breast-feeding in the hours after delivery, it is understood that keeping mother and baby together is important. Stand-alone... Read More

Coated filament for evaporation/condensation aerosol generation of therapeutic agents and methods

04-0113 – Researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have developed an aerosol generator device for the delivery and administration of therapeutic agents to the lungs. The technology provides a tunable delivery method capable of generating aerosols at precise particle sizes and at a wide range of flow rates.

Hinged endoscopic catheter for easier treatment of intestinal obstruction

18-0015 – Intestinal obstruction can result from a variety of medical problems, including gastric outlet obstruction, chronic ulcers, and cancer of the stomach or pancreas, and it leads to impaired or blocked digestion of food, numerous gastrointestinal symptoms, and malnutrition. A common solution to these cases is to bypass the obstruction by creating a connection between the stomach and the small... Read More

Stretchable RF Coil Array for High-Resolution MRI

16-0187 – In MRI, the closeness of RF coils to the imaging subject determines the quality of images obtained. This stretchable RF coil array greatly increases the resolution of MRI images for tissues, including the brain, where flexible coils are not an option.

Next Generation Biomedicine Low Frequency Magnetic Nanoparticles

15-0061 – Novel polymer-coated magnetic nanoparticles (MNP-polymer complexes) have been developed that can be used in a variety of biomedical, therapeutic, and industrial applications. The iron oxide magnetic nanoparticle cores are synthesized by thermal decomposition yielding a tunable, uniform size. These unique polymer coatings have been shown to promote enhanced uptake into tumor and other cells.... Read More

Multi-stage Robot for Transoral Peripheral Lung Access

15-0106 – A robotic approach has been developed for image-guided trans-bronchoscopic lung access. The multi-stage robotic system can bring the benefits of transoral access to patients with difficult-to-access peripheral lung nodules, avoiding the drawbacks of percutaneous and transoral bronchoscopic biopsy. It offers the potential to steerably biopsy peripheral lung regions deep in the parenchyma, via... Read More

Vibration-Induced Stem Cell Chondrogenesis and Osteogenesis

14-0030 – A surgically implantable bioreactor that induces either chondrogenesis (cartilage development) or osteogenesis (formation of bone) from mesenchymal stem cells has been developed.  In vitro studies in which vibratory signals were provided to both human and porcine mesenchymal stem cells demonstrated that at lower frequencies the cells differentiate into a cartilage phenotype, and will... Read More

Superhydrophobic Coatings for Anti-fouling Applications

11-0020 – A superhydrophobic xerogel coating has been developed that is easily prepared and applicable to a wide variety of surfaces. Microbial fouling of biomedical devices leads to infections that may require medical interventions, increase medical costs, and sometimes result in fatality. While superhydrophobic surfaces resist adhesion of microbial fouling agents, current methods for their production... Read More

Biodegradable Elastomers for Medical Devices and Drug Delivery

06-0047 – Amorphous, polyester-based elastomers have been developed with tunable thermal and mechanical properties for applications in tissue engineering and drug delivery. Synthetic materials for biological applications must have similar mechanical properties to those of surrounding tissue to minimize irritation. Commonly used polymers suffer from rapid loss of mechanical properties upon degradation... Read More

Individual Controllable X-ray Pixel Beam Array Design for Radiotherapy

05-0100 – This x-ray pixel beam array technology integrated with carbon nanotube micro-radiotherapy enables shaping of the radiation field electronically without moving parts. Despite its prevalence in cancer treatment, traditional x-ray radiotherapy devices can be costly and complex due to an increasing number of mechanical components. The multipixel x-ray array source has 50 individually controlled... Read More

Modification of Capsule Endsocopy for Enhanced Ability to Detect Gastrointestinal Lesions

05-0072 – An enhanced capsule endoscopy technology has been developed. In vivo experiments in mice using a near-infrared fluorescent probe activated in vivo by cathepsin B demonstrated that biochromoendoscopy (BCE) was able to precisely image adenomatous polyps and distinguish them from benign polyps and inflammatory lesions. BCE uses specific wavelength filters in combination with select activated... Read More