Electrotextile surface design for phototheraphy

Technical textile are defined as the products that developed for industrial needs and became prominent with functional specifications rather than aesthetic characteristics. When compared to traditional textile products, these items can be also defined as high added value products due to their functionality. On the other hand, today, "being portable" is the main feature for many devices and applications, and portable systems have application possibilties in many sectors. Being an example of textile-based portable systems, "electrotextile applications", constitute one of the most innovative areas of technical textiles. Medical industry is one of the main sectors with high potential for use in electro-textile products. The aim of this study is to develope an alternative product prototype for cases known as "newborn jaundice", described in the literature as hyperbilirubenia. "Phototherapy" is one of the most common treatment methods used in hospital for neonatal jaundice. Phototherapy is applied in the way that the baby body is exposed to certain wavelengths of light. Huge sizes of current photothraphy devices cause an obligation for being in the hospital during the treatment, the breakdown in mother-infant relation in the first days of birth and orther related vaious problems. In this study; it is aimed to develop a home-type/portable phototherapy device for those who do not need phototherapy treatment in the hospital with serious jaundice conditions but for whom it would be appropriate to lower the bilirubin level with phototherapy. Positive results have been obtainde in the preliminary tests that performed in Dokuz Eylül University Medical School Neonatology Clinic and decreases in bilirubin levels have been observed as a result of the developed prototype usage.