SmILE

Smart Implants for Life Enrichment

 

Description:

Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs), such as osteoarthritis, osteoporosis, joint and ligament degeneration, and frailty fractures, along with their associated complications, pose a significant threat to older adults, often leading to irreversible declines in health, functionality, and autonomy. The EU-funded Smart Implants for Life Enrichment (SmILE) project aims to develop a complete system and methodology for early risk detection and continuous health monitoring in older adults by leveraging the potential of bone implants as sensors. 

SmILE is combining smart implants, wearable sensors, and an AI-powered digital platform to enable early risk detection and ongoing health monitoring. A novel chip platform will be embedded into existing orthopedic implants to gather real-time data, complemented by data from wearable sensors. This multimodal dataset will be analyzed using machine learning to generate personalized risk profiles, track post-surgical recovery, and provide predictive insights. The system will be co-designed with end-users and stakeholders to ensure usability, patient agency, and adherence to data governance and privacy regulations. The design process will consider physical, mental, socio-economic, and environmental contexts of patients and care contexts.

SmILE aims to deliver a validated digital platform that enables personalized, patient-controlled management of musculoskeletal NCDs, promotes healthy aging, and helps reduce healthcare costs. The main expected results are: (1) An integrated platform to collect, manage, analyze, and securely share multimodal health data from older patients using AI and machine learning; (2) A pan-European, patient-centered data governance model that empowers individuals to control their health data in alignment with regulatory frameworks; and (3) A citizen- and patient-driven solution tailored to the needs of aging populations. The methodologies will be validated through six use cases involving innovative orthopedic and assistive technologies, ranging from intelligent walking aids to instrumented implants, addressing key challenges in musculoskeletal health and functional recovery.

 

Consult the project's Spec Sheet here:

English