Stick-on ultrasound patch hailed as revolution in medical imaging

Ultimately, Zhao envisions people buying boxes of the patches over the counter and using them, with help from smart algorithms on their mobile phones, to monitor their heart, lungs and digestive systems for early signs of disease or infection, or their muscles during rehabilitation or physical training.

The bioadhesive ultrasound (or Baus) patch contains an array of tiny sensors (piezoelectric transducers) that beam ultrasonic waves through the skin and into the body. These waves bounce off blood vessels, tissues and internal organs are detected by the same elements in the patch. At the moment, the patch has to be connected to an instrument that turns the reflections into images, but the researchers are developing a wireless patch to work with software on a mobile phone.