When Philips was looking for medical applications for their flexible Ledfoil disks, they were probably hoping to find
a market of more than 200 people, but luckily for sufferers of the rare Crigler-Najjar syndrome, they happened to come
across Dutch student Philomeen Engels. Engels, a recent graduate of the Delft University of Technology, had the idea of
creating a wearable light therapy device using the Philips tech, which would free Crigler-Najjar patients -- whose
bodies cannot break down the potentially lethal red blood cell by-product called bilirubine -- from the 12 hours they
must spend inside converted sunbeds each day. The device, known as the Ledwrap, contains twelve Ledfoils between two
layers of cloth and can act as either a sleeping bag or a rather bulky bodysuit for more freedom of movement -- well,
as much movement as an extension cord allows, since the LEDs require too much juice to run on batteries. Engels hopes
to have the first Ledwraps on the market within a year, although that may be a bit optimistic, as the prototype has yet
to undergo the rather non-trivial task of actual medical testing.Philips tech enables wearable light therapy device
E. Blass|04.24.06
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April 24th, 2006
When Philips was looking for medical applications for their flexible Ledfoil disks, they were probably hoping to find
a market of more than 200 people, but luckily for sufferers of the rare Crigler-Najjar syndrome, they happened to come
across Dutch student Philomeen Engels. Engels, a recent graduate of the Delft University of Technology, had the idea of
creating a wearable light therapy device using the Philips tech, which would free Crigler-Najjar patients -- whose
bodies cannot break down the potentially lethal red blood cell by-product called bilirubine -- from the 12 hours they
must spend inside converted sunbeds each day. The device, known as the Ledwrap, contains twelve Ledfoils between two
layers of cloth and can act as either a sleeping bag or a rather bulky bodysuit for more freedom of movement -- well,
as much movement as an extension cord allows, since the LEDs require too much juice to run on batteries. Engels hopes
to have the first Ledwraps on the market within a year, although that may be a bit optimistic, as the prototype has yet
to undergo the rather non-trivial task of actual medical testing.All products recommended by Engadget are selected by our editorial team, independent of our parent company. Some of our stories include affiliate links. If you buy something through one of these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
