Millions of people in the United States have chronic wounds, including those living with diabetes, patients recovering from burns, post-surgical patients and other people with injuries. For clinicians, early detection of infection, inflammation or other recovery setbacks can be challenging to detect, primarily because patients may be self-reporting or awaiting lab results. This can result in a worsening infection, long-term damage and, in some cases, amputation.

To combat this, a team of Penn State researchers has developed a portable, electronic sensor system that can monitor multiple biomarkers in wounds and detect early signs of infection or inflammation before symptoms worsen, and potentially before visible symptoms appear. They published their findings in npj 2D Materials and Applications.