February 16, 2012 – Marketwire — Integrated Sensing Systems Inc. (ISSYS), advanced micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) maker, and the University of Michigan (U-M) have received a $1.5M National Institute of Health (NIH) grant, "Novel Micro-Implant To Measure Intracardiac Pressure In Congenital Heart Patients," to develop wireless, implantable pressure sensors based on MEMS technology.
The University of Michigan has been working with ISSYS on the pressure sensor for patients with "complex forms" of congenital heart disease, explained Dr. Martin Bocks, a pediatric cardiologist at the University of Michigan and the project’s medical principal investigator. The implantable device could both improve patient care and increase medical understanding of their conditions.
The grant will fund work on wireless, battery-free, smart, and miniaturized technology, said Dr. Nader Najafi, ISSYS president and CEO and the project’s technical principal investigator. ISSYS operates a multi-million-dollar, state-of-the-art MEMS fabrication facility near Ann Arbor, MI. ISSYS’ quality system is certified to ISO 9001:2008 for industrial products, ISO13485:2003 for medical devices, and ISO13980:2002 for ATEX/IEC Ex approved intrinsically-safe products.
The grant will enable clinical studies in infants and children with complex congenital heart defects. The pediatric medical device field has stringent medical and form factor requirements that have been difficult to meet with traditional technologies. The technology developed under this grant could have "broader applications within the field of adult and pediatric cardiovascular medicine," added Najagi.
ISSYS makes advanced MEMS technologies for industrial and medical devices, microfluidic and scientific analytical sensing applications. ISSYS is a vertically integrated company dedicated to developing and manufacturing system-level products based on MEMS technology. Please visit: http://www.mems-issys.com/