Wireless and Zero-Power Trans-Cardiac Link With Antennified Aortic Valve Bioprostheses

Valvular heart diseases are one of the most common complications in the cardiovascular system. To restore the correct cardiac activity, the failing native heart valve is surgically replaced with a prosthesis. Unfortunately, it often undergoes physio-pathological processes after implantation, including the risks of functional and structural deterioration. Periodic monitoring is hence mandatory all along the life of the patient. As standard screenings are intrusive, this paper proposes a method to exploit the peculiar form-factor of the internal metallic stent of a bioprosthesis as a natural energy harvester to achieve a reliable wireless trans-cardiac RFID-based, battery-free, communication link with no relevant change to the valve. Simulations and tests with a mock-up demonstrate that a robust link with a small size on-skin patch antenna is feasible notwithstanding potential user-specific placement as well as misalignment between the antennas.