Plethysmography of peripheral artery using Fiber Bragg Grating sensors: preliminary results

The rapid spread of cardiovascular diseases and the resulting increase in mortality, is a worrying and high-risk factor, so that systems capable of providing interesting clinical parameters, through timely diagnosis, could help the related health needs. The use of non-invasive and easy-to-handle sensors to monitor vital physiologic parameters is increasingly common in clinical practice. In this scenario, the use of Fiber Bragg Grating (FBGs) embedded in silicone matrices is a good trade-off between adaptability to the skin and reliability of the results. Therefore, we propose a new plethysmographic sensor based on a FBG embedded in a soft silicone patch, that increases the wearability and sensitivity and protects the sensor from external stress. The preliminary results demonstrate that the sensor can record the plethysmographic signal with clear distinction of the systole and diastole peaks, from which important information can be obtained from the cardiovascular point of view.