CINCINNATI — Beep beep beep. The sensor is ready to be tested.
Jason Heikenfeld walks into his lab at the University of Cincinnati. He once set a record for the number of patents at the university. With his new project, he said there are already more than 50.
“This is where the sensors are all fabricated and tested,” Heikenfeld said pointing at rows of machines on the ninth floor of Rhodes Hall. “We can make a batch of dozens of these and make sure they stay accurate.”
In his hands, he holds what looks like a glucose monitor. It may look similar, but he said the device could change the landscape of health care in our country.
“Doctors aren’t happy. Patients aren’t happy. Insurance companies aren’t happy,” Heikenfeld said. “Because it’s not working very well.”
The professor of biomedical engineering is talking about how we monitor our health. Yes, there are Fitbits and devices that collect electrical signals from the body, but nothing studies your DNA — except for glucose monitors for diabetes.
Heikenfeld’s team at UC is focusing on expanding that invention because half of the people who make it to 60 develop a chronic cardiovascular disease.
This new device could help them.
“So before you even get sick, we can tell you that there is something happening,” Heikenfeld said.
Listen to Heikenfeld break down the device below:
And if it’s successful, the professor says it could change our entire healthcare system. Because it provides patients with information they wouldn’t otherwise have. It also saves them a trip to the doctor.
“This is the holy grail,” Heikenfeld said. “People have been trying to do this for 20 years.”
The difference with this wearable device is it lasts much longer than previously thought possible. And now, his team is testing it on real people. The goal is to sell it in 2027.
