Breakthrough in skin adhesive technology – Adhesives Research pioneers 30-day wear tape (2024)

From CGM sensors to cardiac monitors to fitness trackers, wearable medical devices have revolutionized personal healthcare. But until now their effectiveness has been constrained by the adhesion limits of skin tapes. Adhesives Research’s pioneering work on a 30-day tape heralds a major breakthrough for device manufacturers and wearers alike.

Adhesives Research has built its reputation on providing skin adhesives for critical applications where wear time, user comfort, and a high survival rate are pivotal. Our products have played a vital role in the growth of wearable medical devices such as continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) which are designed to be worn on the body for extended periods of time. Our adhesive tapes provide a strong, reliable bond that enables the devices to operate optimally with the least impact to the wearer.

Over the past decade we have developed the technology to extend the wear time of adhesives from 7 days to 15 days. Our latest breakthrough has allowed us to double this time again without compromising on the survival rate as well as preventing skin irritation. These essential qualities have made our products market leaders.

The challenge

Wearable devices such as CGMs are designed to be worn on a near continuous basis to provide glucose readings that enable patients with diabetes to adjust their insulin and glucose intake to maintain healthy blood glucose concentration in real time. To ensure the devices perform correctly, AR’s adhesive tape developers must consider the dynamic and complex structure of the skin surface, which varies from wearer to wearer. In addition to adhering to skin, adhesives must be breathable to prevent maceration of skin, have the right conformability and mechanical properties to interface with skin, and be void of irritants and sensitizers that could cause a skin reaction in users. These requirements present a challenge to achieving extended wear time.

The solution

Adhesives Research has pioneered adhesive technology that provides unrivalled skin adhesion, as initially demonstrated in our internal wear studies of mock devices. While basic pressure-sensitive adhesive testing (e.g. peel, shear, and tack) can be used to optimize adhesive performance in many other areas, only wear studies provide the data needed to gain an accurate picture of performance on skin. This method has enabled us to develop tapes that can consistently and comfortably hold mock CGM devices for 30 days and beyond.

The graph shows the results of a wear study in which three prototype tapes were tested using a mock CGM device (~2 g). Ten participants wore three devices on the back of the arm for up to 30 days. The 30-day prototype tape was able to hold to nine of the ten participants for 30 days. This contrasts with competitive tapes which claim extended wear times but do not provide a high survival rate at the target wear time.

The future

The development of our 30-day skin adhesive tape represents a major breakthrough for manufacturers of wearable medical devices. Thanks to AR’s unique technology, we can design and supply tapes that meet the requirements of a particular device, adhesive patch size, and target wear time. Further, our wear studies provide authoritative statistics that can be used by manufacturers to accelerate their development process. The resulting high reliability can reduce the number of reimbursem*nts for failing to achieve the advertised wear time, resulting in improved profitability and enhanced brand reputation for our customers.

3 reasons why Adhesives Research’s skin adhesive tape leads the market

• Wear time: AR has the longest wear time in the industry.
• Survival rate: AR has the lowest percentage of falloffs at any given wear time.
• Skin irritation: AR has the best performing no/low skin irritation products.

Presented by: Thomas Gordon, Ph.D – Global Product Manager Healthcare