Tissue-viability monitoring using an oxygen-tension sensor

Abstract

Many patients still die every year as a result of anastomotic leakage after surgery. An objective aid to monitor the anastomotic site pre- and postoperatively and detect leakage at an early stage is needed. We propose a miniature measurement system to detect adequate tissue oxygenation pre- and postoperatively (continuously for 7 days) on the colon. The complete sensor chip should include an oxygen-tension sensor (pO2), a carbon dioxide tension sensor (pCO2) and a temperature sensor. The work presented here focuses on the measurements done with the oxygen-tension and temperature sensors. In-vitro measurements have been initially performed to test the sensor system and in-vivo tests were carried out on the kidney and the intestines of male wistar rats. The results obtained so far have shown the suitability of this technique for clinical application, therefore sensor-system miniaturisation is presently underway. © 2008 Springer-Verlag.