Biocompatible, soft materials for stretchable and epicardial patch enabling diagnosis of heart disease

One of the most significant public health concerns is heart failure, with a mortality rate greater than most cancers. Myocardial disease may cause heart failure, and it often comes with the impairment of the electrical conduction system and function of myocardium. Compared to conventional materials, novel advanced materials have been developed for providing the conformable covering and softness of bio-implantable epicardial patch with epicardium surfaces. However, it is still challenging in material research to achieve both conformability and biocompatibility, which is important to detect signals from heart. Unlike conventional wearable and implantable bioelectronics that consist of metal and/or inorganic materials, biological tissues are hydrophilic, ion rich, and fluidic. This difference in chemical properties limits the long-term biocompatibility and performance of bioelectronic system. In this research, we address the importance of early diagnosis of heart disease from bio-implantable system and introduce the candidate materials for components of biocompatible, conformable epicardial sensing/pacing system. The proper combinations of materials could provide a new pathway towards the reconstruction of the soft diagnosis system in the future.