Emergence of microfluidic wearable technologies

Abstract

There has been an intense interest in the development of wearable technologies, arising from increasing demands in the areas of fitness and healthcare. While still at an early stage, incorporating microfluidics in wearable technologies has enormous potential, especially in healthcare applications. For example, current microfluidic fabrication techniques can be innovatively modified to fabricate microstructures and incorporate electrically conductive elements on soft, flexible and stretchable materials. In fact, by leverarging on such microfabrication and liquid manipulation techniques, the developed flexible microfluidic wearable technologies have enabled several biosensing applications, including in situ sweat metabolites analysis, vital signs monitoring, and gait analysis. As such, we anticipate further significant breakthroughs and potential uses of wearable microfluidics in active drug delivery patches, soft robotics sensing and control, and even implantable artificial organs in the near future.