StrokeShield: A Noninvasive Thermoelectric Neck Patch for Targeted Carotid ArteryNeuroprotection via Hypothermia in Acute Ischemic Stroke
By: Srishanth Ravi, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology
Ischemic stroke causes irreversible brain injury within minutes due to rapid metabolic failure and excitotoxic damage, yet current hypothermia-based neuroprotection methods are invasive, slow, or impractical in prehospital settings. This study investigated whether a portable, noninvasive thermoelectric neck patch could rapidly and safely induce targeted carotid artery cooling sufficient for neuroprotective hypothermia. A Peltier-based cooling patch was engineered and tested on a biomimetic phantom simulating skin, subcutaneous fat, muscle, and a perfused carotid artery at physiological flow, with temperature sensors embedded at multiple depths to quantify cooling dynamics. Patch application reduced arterial temperature to 31.9 °C within 15 minutes (0.334 °C/min), demonstrating effective cooling at clinically relevant depths. A fluorescence-based stroke simulation using the pH- and temperature-sensitive dye fluorescein validated hypothermic protection: at 32 °C, fluorescence decay was significantly slower than at 37 °C, indicating reduced biochemical degradation. Three-dimensional heat transfer modeling using Pennes’ bioheat equation with layered tissue properties closely matched experimental data, and cerebral metabolic rate modeling predicted a 33.1% reduction in oxygen demand. Together, these findings demonstrate rapid, selective carotid cooling and support a low-cost, noninvasive strategy for accelerated prehospital stroke intervention.
