Lab-on-a-Scalpel: Medical Tool Incorporating a Disposable Fully 3D-Printed Electrochemical Cell Promoting Drop-Volume Chemical Analysis in the Operating Theater

Abstract

Surgical operations are intricate and invasive procedures that require continuous monitoring of the patient's biochemical profile. Point-of-care testing would allow healthcare professionals to identify abnormalities and make the necessary interventions to minimize the risk of complications and ensure patient safety. To this end, we report the development of a disposable and compact fully 3D-printed electrochemical cell incorporated into a medical scalpel (Lab-on-a-Scalpel), aiming to promote on-site (electro)chemical analysis in the operating theater. This multifunctional device minimizes the number of instruments needed during surgery and can be fabricated on-demand by using a desktop-sized 3D printer at a very low cost. The performance of the Lab-on-a-Scalpel sensing device was evaluated over various electrochemical techniques (cyclic voltammetry, amperometry, and differential pulse voltammetry) and different setups (stirring, drop-volume analysis, polarization potentials, etc.) for the determination of epinephrine. Results showed attractive analytical figures-of-merit, with the limit of detection (LOD) reaching 0.13 μM, and high accuracy in recovery studies conducted on artificial blood samples. Our findings suggest that Lab-on-a-Scalpel is a valuable tool that enables near-patient diagnostics with a minimum sample volume and holds promise to become an essential tool for robotic-assisted surgery.