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Small biodegradable implant for releasing local anesthetic inside the body

August 7, 2019

Patients fitted with an orthopedic prosthetic commonly experience a period of intense pain after surgery. In an effort to control the pain, surgeons inject painkillers into the tissue during the operation. When that wears off a day or two later, the patients are given morphine through a catheter placed near the spine. Yet catheters are not particularly comfortable, and the drugs spread throughout the body, affecting all organs.

Researchers in EPFL’s Microsystems Laboratory are now working on a biodegradable implant that would release a local anesthetic on-demand over several days.

Read More on The Medical News