CANBERRA, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Australian researchers have developed a new device that they say could save lives during open heart surgeries, especially for babies.
The tiny fiber-optic sensor, invented by a team from Flinders University in South Australia (SA), monitors the amount of blood flowing through the aorta during prolonged and dangerous surgery.
John Arkwright, the leader of the research team, said that the device could be a game changer for babies who are vulnerable to drops in blood pressure during surgery.
"The minimally invasive device is suitable for neonates right through to adults," he said in a media release.
"It's a far more responsive measurement compared to traditional blood flow monitoring - and without life-threatening delays in the period 'snapshot' provided by current blood flow practices using ultrasound or thermo-dilution."
Traditional methods to measure blood flow during surgery usually only measure the average flow every 30 minutes.
Flinders University had filed a patent for the device and is now seeking industry partners to investigate how it will behave in different conditions.
"The proof-of-concept prototype is potentially a low-cost device which has passed initial testing in a heart-lung machine," chief investigator Albert Ruiz-Vargas said.
"It can be inserted through a small keyhole aperture in the skin into the femoral artery in individuals where heart function is compromised and is so small it can even measure small changes in flow in the tiny blood vessels of infants.
"It's a simple design, which can give readouts similar to a pulsating heartbeat response on a laptop or nearby screen."
