Multifunctional Flexible Sensors for Pressure Therapy in Burn Rehabilitation

Abstract

Pressure therapy is a widely adopted approach to suppressing hypertrophic scar formation after burns. However, current clinical practice primarily relies on the manual experience of medical staff and lacks accurate pressure feedback. Available commercial pressure sensors target high-pressure uses, mismatching low-pressure needs for burn rehabilitation, and suffer accuracy interference from nonpressure factors. To address these challenges, we developed a wearable multifunctional flexible sensor that integrates a patterned Cr/Au metallized polyimide (PI) substrate with a conductive PDMS film featuring bionic spinosum textures. The epidermis-inspired pressure sensing unit allows real-time monitoring of pressure variations in pressure therapy, achieving a sensitivity of 35%/kPa within the pressure range required for burn rehabilitation (1.3–3.3 kPa). Additionally, the metal electrodes featuring a localized cracking and serpentine design exhibit high linearity in temperature response and exceptional sensitivity to strain, respectively. Furthermore, both finite-element analysis (FEA) simulations and experimental results confirm that pressure and strain effects are spatially localized on our sensor, while temperature exhibits a global effect, enabling effective cross-parameter interference elimination. The applications, including real-time pressure monitoring in bandages, pressure distribution tracking in elastic gloves, and distinguishing joint movement patterns, highlight how our sensor can serve as an excellent clinical tool for optimizing pressure therapy protocols, quantifying rehabilitation intensity, and improving therapeutic outcomes in burn rehabilitation.