Engineers have created an implantable, biodegradable device that’s designed to accelerate growth and boost healing in a damaged nerve. The device — as tiny as a dime and as thin as a sheet of paper — delivered tiny zaps of electricity to damaged nerves that had been repaired by surgery, but still needed to regrow. The wireless device sped up that process and was naturally absorbed into the body after two weeks. The scientists say they would one day like to see this kind of “bioelectronic medicine” used to treat nerve injuries in humans, but there’s still a need for much more research.
Learn more: Wireless bioresorbable electronic system enables sustained nonpharmacological neuroregenerative therapy