Autonomous wearable sweat rate monitoring based on digitized microbubble detection

Lab Chip. 2022 Nov 8;22(22):4267-4275. doi: 10.1039/d2lc00670g.

Abstract

Advancements in wearable bioanalytical microsystems have enabled diurnal and (semi)continuous monitoring of physiologically-relevant indices that are accessible through probing sweat. To deliver an undistorted and physiologically-meaningful interpretation of these readings, tracking the sweat secretion rate is essential, because it allows for calibrating the biomarker readings against variations in sweat secretion and inferring the body's hydration/electrolyte homeostasis status. To realize an autonomous wearable solution with intrinsically high signal-to-noise ratio sweat rate sensing capabilities, here, we devise a digitized microbubble detection mechanism-delivered by a hybrid microfluidic/electronic system with a compact footprint. This mechanism is based on the intermittent generation of microliter-scale bubbles via electrolysis and the instantaneous measurement of their time-of-flight (and thus, velocity) via impedimetric sensing. In this way, we overcome the limitations of previously proposed sweat rate sensing modalities that are inherently susceptible to non-targeted secretion characteristics (pH, conductivity, and temperature), constrained by volume, or lack system integration for autonomous on-body operation. By deploying our solution in human subject trials, we validate the utility of our solution for seamless monitoring of exercise- and iontophoretically-induced sweat secretion profiles.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Biosensing Techniques*
  • Humans
  • Microbubbles
  • Sweat
  • Wearable Electronic Devices*