Shedding New Light on Nerve Pain

Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology developed transparent, flexible, and soft hydrogel optical fibers they hope will help identify the origins of, and treatments for, nerve-related pain. The design of the optical fibers allows for movement in mice, but inhibits damage to surrounding tissue. The fibers send pulses of light to nerves to inhibit pain. The research was published in the journal, “Nature Methods.” Continue reading to learn more about how researchers plan to use optical fibers as an experimental tool, especially for peripheral nerve pain, which is estimated to affect more than 20 million people in the U.S. alone.

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