The Compressiometer

The Compressiometer: Towards a new skin tensiometer for research and surgical planning

Scheepens, Karlijn M.J. (Student TU Delft; Leiden University Medical Center)
Marsidi, Nick (Leiden University Medical Center; Ziekenhuisgroep Twente)
Genders, Roel E. (Leiden University Medical Center)
Horeman, T. (TU Delft Medical Instruments & Bio-Inspired Technology)

2021

After surgery, around 35% of patients experience problems of excessive scarring, causing disfiguring and impaired function. An incision placed in the wrong direction causes unnecessary skin tension on the wound, resulting in increased collagen disposition and potentially hypertrophic scars. Currently, skin tension lines are used for incision planning. However, these lines are not universal and are a static representation of the skin tension that is in fact under influence of muscle action. By designing a new skin force measurement device the authors intend to make research on dynamic skin characteristics possible and to objectify incision planning and excision closure planning. The device applies a known compressive force to the skin in standardized directions and measures the displacement of the skin. This allows users to measure the skin reaction force in response to compression and to determine the optimal incision line or best wound closure direction. The device has an accuracy of 96% and a sensitivity of < 0.01 mm. It is compact, works non-invasively and standardizes measurement directions and is therefore an improvement over previously designed skin tensiometers.

Force
Force measurement
Incision planning
Langer lines
Medical device
Planning
Skin
Skin tension
Springs
Surgery
Tensiometer
Wounds

http://resolver.tudelft.nl/uuid:9d97483f-4eba-4c1e-aaf0-c3fadaab800d

https://doi.org/10.1109/JTEHM.2021.3133485

IEEE Journal of Translational Engineering in Health and Medicine, 10

Institutional Repository

journal article

© 2021 Karlijn M.J. Scheepens, Nick Marsidi, Roel E. Genders, T. Horeman