Published today in Device, Cell Press, we report a fully printed wearable that monitors lithium levels from sweat, enabling personalized and non-invasive care for bipolar disorder. This OECT-based wearable system could replace traditional lab-based blood draws with real-time tracking, thereby improving treatment adjustments and reducing patient burden. Congratulations to Shafiq for leading this gigantic effort, and the team: Brince Paul Kunnel, Munia Ferdoushi Mou, Md Farhad Hassan, Sangwon Cha, Wenxin Cai, and Dr. Adam Frank at the Keck School of Medicine of USC.

Paper title: Wearable organic-electrochemical-transistor-based lithium sensor for precision mental health

Abstract: Mental health disorders, including bipolar disorder, pose significant challenges worldwide, necessitating precise monitoring of lithium, a gold-standard medication for this condition. We introduce a fully printed, wearable organic electrochemical transistor (OECT)-based sensor for non-invasive and continuous monitoring of lithium levels in sweat. This sensor integrates inkjet and 3D printing to fabricate multilayer OECTs with an ion-selective membrane alongside iontophoretic sweat induction and microfluidic guidance for real-time sensing. Our sensor demonstrates a sensitivity of ΔIds/I0 = 0.5/decade, a 0.1 mM detection limit in artificial sweat, and selectivity for lithium over common interfering ions. A complete wearable system with wireless readout enables real-time data transmission to a smartphone interface. Validation in both healthy individuals and bipolar patients confirms the device’s ability to detect therapeutically significant lithium levels. This article provides a promising path for precision mental health management, presenting a first-of-its-kind wearable real-time monitoring solution for lithium—a vital medication in treating bipolar disorder.

Publication:

  1. Wearable organic-electrochemical-transistor-based lithium sensor for precision mental health Mohammad Shafiqul Islam, Brince Paul Kunnel, Munia Ferdoushi, Md Farhad Hassan, Sangwon Cha, Wenxin Cai, Adam Frank, and Yasser Khan Device, 2025 Media coverage: USC News, Newsweek, Psychiatrist.com, and many more.

    Mental health disorders, including bipolar disorder, pose significant challenges worldwide, necessitating precise monitoring of lithium, a gold-standard medication for this condition. We introduce a fully printed, wearable organic electrochemical transistor (OECT)-based sensor for non-invasive and continuous monitoring of lithium levels in sweat. This sensor integrates inkjet and 3D printing to fabricate multilayer OECTs with an ion-selective membrane alongside iontophoretic sweat induction and microfluidic guidance for real-time sensing. Our sensor demonstrates a sensitivity of ΔIds/I0 = 0.5/decade, a 0.1 mM detection limit in artificial sweat, and selectivity for lithium over common interfering ions. A complete wearable system with wireless readout enables real-time data transmission to a smartphone interface. Validation in both healthy individuals and bipolar patients confirms the device’s ability to detect therapeutically significant lithium levels. This article provides a promising path for precision mental health management, presenting a first-of-its-kind wearable real-time monitoring solution for lithium—a vital medication in treating bipolar disorder.

    @article{islam2025lithium, title = {Wearable organic-electrochemical-transistor-based lithium sensor for precision mental health}, author = {Islam, Mohammad Shafiqul and Kunnel, Brince Paul and Ferdoushi, Munia and Hassan, Md Farhad and Cha, Sangwon and Cai, Wenxin and Frank, Adam and Khan, Yasser}, journal = {Device}, year = {2025}, publisher = {Cell Press}, doi = {10.1016/j.device.2025.100862}, thumbnail = {islam2025lithium.png}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.device.2025.100862}, pdf = {islam2025lithium.pdf}, note = {Media coverage: }, media_1 = {USC News, }, media_1_link = {https://viterbischool.usc.edu/news/2025/07/new-wearable-sensor-made-at-usc-could-help-bipolar-patients-track-medication-levels-through-sweat/}, media_2 = {Newsweek, }, media_2_link = {https://www.newsweek.com/bipolar-disorder-wearable-sensor-medication-tracker-2104162}, media_3 = {Psychiatrist.com, }, media_3_link = {https://www.psychiatrist.com/news/smart-patch-offers-breakthrough-in-bipolar-disorder-monitoring/}, media_4 = {and many more.}, media_4_link = {https://www.altmetric.com/details/179474695} }

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