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• Posted August 14, 2024

Implant Automatically Releases Naloxone to Reverse Opioid Overdose

A new implant could help prevent overdose deaths by automatically administering the OD-reversing drug naloxone, a new study shows.

The implant, about the size of a stick of gum, is placed under the skin, where it monitors vital signs like heart rate and breathing, researchers say.

When the implant determines an OD has occurred, it rapidly pumps out a dose of naloxone, researchers said.

In animal studies, the device reversed potentially fatal opioid overdoses 96% of the time, according to results published Aug. 14 in the journal Device.

“Having an automated robotic system that is able to sense and reverse opiate overdose could be transformational, particularly for high-risk populations,” said senior researcher Giovanni Traverso, a clinician and biomedical engineer at MIT, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Broad Institute.

An opioid overdose causes a person to stop breathing. That can cause permanent brain damage within three minutes and death within four to six minutes, researchers said in background notes.

To help prevent overdose deaths, doctors have started prescribing naloxone, which can restore normal breathing by blocking the effects of opioids like heroin or fentanyl. It can be administered as an injection or nasal spray.

Unfortunately, many people are alone when they overdose, and they lose consciousness before they can take their lifesaving naloxone, researchers said. Bystanders also might not recognize the symptoms of overdose or know that the person has naloxone on hand.

To address this, researchers developed a device fitted with sensors that track heartbeat, breathing, blood pressure and oxygen saturation. It also has a small reservoir that can carry up to 10 milligrams of naloxone.

When the device senses an overdose, it begins buzzing and sends an alert to the user’s smartphone that allows them to override naloxone administration if it’s a false reading, researchers said.

If no override occurs, the implant injects the naloxone within about 10 seconds, researchers said. The device also can send an alert to loved ones or caregivers when it activates.

The implant, called “iSOS” by researchers, successfully revived 24 out of 25 overdosed pigs within a little over three minutes, researchers said.

“We created a closed-loop system that can sense the onset of the opiate overdose and then release the antidote, and then you see that recovery,” Traverso said in an MIT news release.

Researchers plan to continue work on the device by miniaturizing it even more.

“This is only the first generation of this device, and so there's certainly room for further miniaturization and more testing in large mammals like pigs, but we’re looking to begin testing in humans in the next few years,” Traverso said.

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on naloxone.

SOURCE: MIT, news release, Aug. 14, 2024