IIT-M develops easy-to-use screening device for assessment of Blood Vessel Health

The device, which has already been extensively field-tested on more than 5,000 human subjects, is ready for technology transfer

Researchers with the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology-Madras (IIT-M) have developed a novel, non-invasive device to assess the health and age of blood vessels which can be used in routine medical examination, thereby providing early screening for cardiovascular diseases.

Called ARTSENS, the device which is powered by a proprietary non-imaging probe and an intelligent computing platform, is developed by Healthcare Technology Innovation Centre (HTIC) at IIT-M.

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The device, which has already been extensively field-tested on more than 5,000 human subjects and is ready for technology transfer and commercialisation, can provide early warnings for future cardiovascular diseases. The technology already has five utility patents in the US, European Union, and India and 10 design patents and awaits awarding of 28 patents in various jurisdictions.

The field results of this device have already been published in over 100 scientific peer-reviewed publications and the latest research papers were published in the reputed, peer-reviewed Journal of Hypertension. While the research was led by Dr Jayaraj Joseph, Assistant Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT-M, the paper in the journal was co-authored by Dr P M Nabeel, Lead Research Scientist, HTIC-IIT-M, Mr V Raj Kiran, PhD scholar, IIT-M, and Dr Joseph.

“Our ARTSENS device can assess the effect of molecular and protein level changes in the vessel wall caused due to disease and ageing, by measuring the material property in a completely non-invasive and accurate manner,” Dr Joseph said, adding that the device makes vascular ageing assessment accessible to a large population in both clinical and also non-clinical settings such as in a gym and health centre, among others.

Scientists at Radboud University Medical Center, The Netherlands, are using this device to investigate the association between arterial age, physical (in)activity, and cardiovascular events and AIIMS New Delhi researchers are using it to study and understand the physiological underpinnings of arterial ageing in various disease conditions.

“We have used the latest ARTSENS device in our recent clinical studies on more than 600 subjects. Easy to use, portable devices allow large scale research studies to truly understand vascular ageing.,” Prof Dick Thijssen, Radboud UMC, The Netherlands, who also collaborated on this project, said,

One of the main causes of cardiovascular diseases is the loss of flexibility and suppleness of the blood vessels of the body due to the cellular and molecular changes in the arterial wall, which is often followed by deposition of plaque. When the artery becomes stiff and ages prematurely, the risks of cardiovascular events increase. Another marker of cardiovascular diseases is central blood pressure, the IIT-M said.

“ARTSENS can open up the window of opportunity to non-invasively monitor the changes in vascular health much before the traditional cardiovascular risk factors are deranged in individuals at risk of developing cardiovascular diseases in the future,” Dr. Dinu S Chandran, Department of Physiology, AIIMS New Delhi, said.

ARTSENS simultaneously checks for arterial stiffness and central blood pressure and the device comprises pressure cuffs to be affixed at the upper arm and thighs and a probe applied to the surface of the neck to detect the carotid artery. It also measures carotid arterial stiffness, aortic pulse wave velocity and central blood pressure, all three being important markers of cardiovascular health, the IIT-M said.