Research progress on flexible wearable sensors for health monitoring_Journal of Biomedical Engineering

Authors：

CHEN Xue ^1,2 ,  XU Guizhi ^1,2 ,  徐桂芝 ^1,2 , 審校 ^1,2

1. State Key Laboratory of Intelligent Power Distribution Equipment and System, School of Electrical Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300130, P. R. China;
2. Tianjin Key Laboratory of Bioelectromagnetic Technology and Intelligent Health, School of Electrical Engineering, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300130, P. R. China;

Corresponding?author：

XU Guizhi, Email: gzxu@hebut.edu.cn; 徐桂芝, Email: gzxu@hebut.edu.cn

Keywords：

Flexible wearable sensors; Health monitoring; Vital signs; Biochemical markers; Motion and neural activity

DOI：

10.7507/1001-5515.202412022

Video：

Export PDF Favorites Scan Get Citation

Abstract Full text Figures/Tables Video References Cited by

With the intensification of global aging trends and the continuous rise in the incidence of chronic diseases, the demand for health monitoring and early intervention has become increasingly urgent. Owing to their non-invasive nature, portability, and comfort, flexible wearable sensors have emerged as a key technology driving the development of personalized healthcare. Starting from specific application scenarios in health monitoring, this article systematically reviews recent research advances in flexible sensors within the healthcare field. Firstly, it outlines the design fundamentals of flexible sensors. This is followed by a focused analysis of their specific applications in monitoring vital signs, biochemical markers, as well as motion and neural activities, along with an in-depth exploration of the clinical significance, technical challenges, and targeted solutions in different scenarios. Finally, the current technical bottlenecks and clinical challenges are summarized, and an outlook on the future development of health monitoring systems is provided. This review aims to provide a systematic reference for the deep integration of flexible electronics technology and medicine.

1.	黃秋帆, 馬也, 徐志云. 柔性可穿戴傳感器用于心血管疾病監測的研究進展. 中國生物醫學工程學報, 2024, 43(2): 214-226.
2.	戴厚德, 熊永生, 蔡國恩, 等. 基于可穿戴式傳感裝置的帕金森運動癥狀量化評估的研究進展. 中國生物醫學工程學報, 2018, 37(2): 229-236.
3.	朱國建, 陳愛英, 王冉冉, 等. 用于人體健康監測的可穿戴傳感器件研究進展. 分析化學, 2022, 50(11): 1673-1684.
4.	Yi Y, Liao H, Liu E, et al. Review of flexible biomedical sensors: design, application, and challenge. IEEE Sensors Journal, 2023, 24(3): 2321-2328.
5.	Zhong G, Liu Q, Huang Y, et al. A wideband multimodal flexible sensor integrating vertical graphene and sea urchin-like nanoparticles for post-stroke rehabilitation. Advanced Materials, 2025, 37(44): e08206.
6.	Jung Y, Gu J, Yeo J, et al. Highly sensitive soft pressure sensors for wearable applications based on composite films with curved 3D carbon nanotube structures. Small, 2024, 20(2): e2303981.
7.	Choi G, Kim J, Kim H, et al. Motion-adaptive tessellated skin patches with switchable adhesion for wearable electronics. Advanced Materials, 2025, 37(4): e2412271.
8.	Ye C, Wang M, Min J, et al. A wearable aptamer nanobiosensor for non-invasive female hormone monitoring. Nature Nanotechnology, 2024, 19(3): 330-337.
9.	Yang G, Lin R, Li H, et al. Implantable wireless suture sensor for in situ tendon and ligament strain monitoring. Science Advances, 2025, 11(9): eadt3811.
10.	Wei J, Zhang Z, Chen L, et al. Flexible piezoresistive sensors based on PPy granule-anchored multilayer fibrous membranes with a wide operating range and high sensitivity. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2024, 16(15): 19421-19431.
11.	Guo J, Tuo J, Sun J, et al. Stretchable multimodal photonic sensor for wearable multiparameter health monitoring. Advanced Materials, 2025, 37(5): e2412322.
12.	Kim K, Hong J H, Bae K, et al. Extremely durable electrical impedance tomography-based soft and ultrathin wearable e-skin for three-dimensional tactile interfaces. Science Advances, 2024, 10(38): eadr1099.
13.	Zheng X, Wang S, Ding B, et al. Ultrathin elastomer nanofiber-based skin-like electronic with multi-mode sensing capabilities. Small Methods, 2025, 9(9): e01064.
14.	Wang Y, Chen P, Ding Y, et al. Multifunctional nano-conductive hydrogels with high mechanical strength, toughness and fatigue resistance as self-powered wearable sensors and deep learning-assisted recognition system. Advanced Functional Materials, 2024, 34(49): 2409081.
15.	Zeng Q, Tian X, Nguyen D T, et al. A digitally embroidered metamaterial biosensor for kinetic environments. Nature Electronics, 2024, 7(11): 1025-1034.
16.	楊麗, 陳雪, 王子涵, 等. 基于激光誘導石墨烯的柔性超疏水溫度傳感器研究. 電工技術學報, 2023, 38(S01): 257-266.
17.	Sun G, Wang D, Wang P, et al. A flexible temperature sensor with ultrafast response speed and high stability achieved by improving substrate thermal conductivity and radiative cooling. Advanced Functional Materials, 2025, DOI: 10.1002/adfm.202512296.
18.	Du Y, Zhou C, Feng Y, et al. Flexible, multimodal device for measurement of body temperature, core temperature, thermal conductivity and water content. npj Flexible Electronics, 2024, 8: 85.
19.	Wicaksono I, Tucker C I, Sun T, et al. A tailored, electronic textile conformable suit for large-scale spatiotemporal physiological sensing in vivo. npj Flexible Electronics, 2020, 4(1): 5.
20.	Zhang X, Chen J, Zheng Z, et al. Flexible temperature sensor with high reproducibility and wireless closed-loop system for decoupled multimodal health monitoring and personalized thermoregulation. Advanced Materials, 2024, 36(45): e2407859.
21.	Li S, Wang H, Ma W, et al. Monitoring blood pressure and cardiac function without positioning via a deep learning-assisted strain sensor array. Science Advances, 2023, 9(32): eadh0615.
22.	Wang X, Wu G, Zhang X, et al. Traditional chinese medicine (TCM)-inspired fully printed soft pressure sensor array with self-adaptive pressurization for highly reliable individualized long-term pulse diagnostics. Advanced Materials, 2025, 37(1): e2410312.
23.	Hou S, Chen X, Assi D S, et al. Tactile-transparent wearable sensor for clinician-friendly pulse wave velocity monitoring and cardiovascular risk profiling. ACS Nano, 2025, 19(36): 32822-32835.
24.	Yang J, Zhang K, Yu J, et al. Facile fabrication of robust and reusable PDMS supported graphene dry electrodes for wearable electrocardiogram monitoring. Advanced Materials Technologies, 2021, 6(9): 2100262.
25.	Tu J, Min J, Song Y, et al. A wireless patch for the monitoring of C-reactive protein in sweat. Nature Biomedical Engineering, 2023, 7(10): 1293-1306.
26.	Yang L, Wang H, Abdullah A M, et al. Direct laser writing of the porous graphene foam for multiplexed electrochemical sweat sensors. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2023, 15(29): 34332-34342.
27.	Wang M, Yang Y, Min J, et al. A wearable electrochemical biosensor for the monitoring of metabolites and nutrients. Nature Biomedical Engineering, 2022, 6(11): 1225-1235.
28.	Shirzaei Sani E, Xu C, Wang C, et al. A stretchable wireless wearable bioelectronic system for multiplexed monitoring and combination treatment of infected chronic wounds. Science Advances, 2023, 9(12): eadf7388.
29.	Zhao X, You X, Wang Z, et al. Noninvasive diagnosis of early-stage chronic kidney disease and monitoring of the hemodialysis process in clinical practice via exhaled breath analysis using an ultrasensitive flexible NH3 sensor assisted by pattern recognition. ACS Sensors, 2025, 10(4): 2823-2839.
30.	Hu C, Zhou J, Zhang J, et al. A structural color hydrogel for diagnosis of halitosis and screening of periodontitis. Materials Horizons, 2024, 11(2): 519-530.
31.	Wu Z, Wang H, Ding Q, et al. A self-powered, rechargeable, and wearable hydrogel patch for wireless gas detection with extraordinary performance. Advanced Functional Materials, 2023, 33(21): 2300046.
32.	Huang W, Ding Q, Wang H, et al. Design of stretchable and self-powered sensing device for portable and remote trace biomarkers detection. Nature Communications, 2023, 14(1): 5221.
33.	Zhang H, Yang C, Xia H, et al. Layer-by-layer self-assembled honeycomb structure flexible pressure sensor array for gait analysis and motion posture recognition with the assistance of the ResNet-50 neural network. ACS Sensors, 2025, 10(3): 2358-2366.
34.	Wu X, Liang Y, Lu L, et al. Fabric-based flexible pressure sensor arrays with ultra-wide pressure range for lower limb motion capture system. Research, 2025, 8: 0835.
35.	Li J, Wu K, Xiao J, et al. Flexible multichannel muscle impedance sensors for collaborative human-machine interfaces. Science Advances, 2025, 11(26): eadv3359.
36.	Li T, Zhao H, Li H, et al. Dual-modal stretchable sensing patches for in situ monitoring of electromyography and acoustic myography. Advanced Functional Materials, 2024, 34(51): 2409780.
37.	Yan X, Liu Z, Fu Y, et al. Liquid metal@ silk fibroin peptide particles initiated hydrogels with high toughness, adhesion, and conductivity for portable and continuous electrophysiological monitoring. Advanced Functional Materials, 2025, 35(22): 2420240.
38.	Chen X, Li R, Niu G, et al. Porous graphene foam composite-based dual-mode sensors for underwater temperature and subtle motion detection. Chemical Engineering Journal, 2022, 444: 136631.
39.	Ahmed S, Momin M, Ren J, et al. Stick-and-play bioadhesive hairlike electrodes for chronic EEG recording on human. npj Biomedical Innovations, 2025, 2(1): 9.
40.	Lin X, Ou Z, Wang X, et al. Self-adhesive and biocompatible dry electrodes with conformal contact to skin for epidermal electrophysiology. Interdisciplinary Materials, 2024, 3(5): 775-790.

1. 黃秋帆, 馬也, 徐志云. 柔性可穿戴傳感器用于心血管疾病監測的研究進展. 中國生物醫學工程學報, 2024, 43(2): 214-226.
2. 戴厚德, 熊永生, 蔡國恩, 等. 基于可穿戴式傳感裝置的帕金森運動癥狀量化評估的研究進展. 中國生物醫學工程學報, 2018, 37(2): 229-236.
3. 朱國建, 陳愛英, 王冉冉, 等. 用于人體健康監測的可穿戴傳感器件研究進展. 分析化學, 2022, 50(11): 1673-1684.
4. Yi Y, Liao H, Liu E, et al. Review of flexible biomedical sensors: design, application, and challenge. IEEE Sensors Journal, 2023, 24(3): 2321-2328.
5. Zhong G, Liu Q, Huang Y, et al. A wideband multimodal flexible sensor integrating vertical graphene and sea urchin-like nanoparticles for post-stroke rehabilitation. Advanced Materials, 2025, 37(44): e08206.
6. Jung Y, Gu J, Yeo J, et al. Highly sensitive soft pressure sensors for wearable applications based on composite films with curved 3D carbon nanotube structures. Small, 2024, 20(2): e2303981.
7. Choi G, Kim J, Kim H, et al. Motion-adaptive tessellated skin patches with switchable adhesion for wearable electronics. Advanced Materials, 2025, 37(4): e2412271.
8. Ye C, Wang M, Min J, et al. A wearable aptamer nanobiosensor for non-invasive female hormone monitoring. Nature Nanotechnology, 2024, 19(3): 330-337.
9. Yang G, Lin R, Li H, et al. Implantable wireless suture sensor for in situ tendon and ligament strain monitoring. Science Advances, 2025, 11(9): eadt3811.
10. Wei J, Zhang Z, Chen L, et al. Flexible piezoresistive sensors based on PPy granule-anchored multilayer fibrous membranes with a wide operating range and high sensitivity. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2024, 16(15): 19421-19431.
11. Guo J, Tuo J, Sun J, et al. Stretchable multimodal photonic sensor for wearable multiparameter health monitoring. Advanced Materials, 2025, 37(5): e2412322.
12. Kim K, Hong J H, Bae K, et al. Extremely durable electrical impedance tomography-based soft and ultrathin wearable e-skin for three-dimensional tactile interfaces. Science Advances, 2024, 10(38): eadr1099.
13. Zheng X, Wang S, Ding B, et al. Ultrathin elastomer nanofiber-based skin-like electronic with multi-mode sensing capabilities. Small Methods, 2025, 9(9): e01064.
14. Wang Y, Chen P, Ding Y, et al. Multifunctional nano-conductive hydrogels with high mechanical strength, toughness and fatigue resistance as self-powered wearable sensors and deep learning-assisted recognition system. Advanced Functional Materials, 2024, 34(49): 2409081.
15. Zeng Q, Tian X, Nguyen D T, et al. A digitally embroidered metamaterial biosensor for kinetic environments. Nature Electronics, 2024, 7(11): 1025-1034.
16. 楊麗, 陳雪, 王子涵, 等. 基于激光誘導石墨烯的柔性超疏水溫度傳感器研究. 電工技術學報, 2023, 38(S01): 257-266.
17. Sun G, Wang D, Wang P, et al. A flexible temperature sensor with ultrafast response speed and high stability achieved by improving substrate thermal conductivity and radiative cooling. Advanced Functional Materials, 2025, DOI: 10.1002/adfm.202512296.
18. Du Y, Zhou C, Feng Y, et al. Flexible, multimodal device for measurement of body temperature, core temperature, thermal conductivity and water content. npj Flexible Electronics, 2024, 8: 85.
19. Wicaksono I, Tucker C I, Sun T, et al. A tailored, electronic textile conformable suit for large-scale spatiotemporal physiological sensing in vivo. npj Flexible Electronics, 2020, 4(1): 5.
20. Zhang X, Chen J, Zheng Z, et al. Flexible temperature sensor with high reproducibility and wireless closed-loop system for decoupled multimodal health monitoring and personalized thermoregulation. Advanced Materials, 2024, 36(45): e2407859.
21. Li S, Wang H, Ma W, et al. Monitoring blood pressure and cardiac function without positioning via a deep learning-assisted strain sensor array. Science Advances, 2023, 9(32): eadh0615.
22. Wang X, Wu G, Zhang X, et al. Traditional chinese medicine (TCM)-inspired fully printed soft pressure sensor array with self-adaptive pressurization for highly reliable individualized long-term pulse diagnostics. Advanced Materials, 2025, 37(1): e2410312.
23. Hou S, Chen X, Assi D S, et al. Tactile-transparent wearable sensor for clinician-friendly pulse wave velocity monitoring and cardiovascular risk profiling. ACS Nano, 2025, 19(36): 32822-32835.
24. Yang J, Zhang K, Yu J, et al. Facile fabrication of robust and reusable PDMS supported graphene dry electrodes for wearable electrocardiogram monitoring. Advanced Materials Technologies, 2021, 6(9): 2100262.
25. Tu J, Min J, Song Y, et al. A wireless patch for the monitoring of C-reactive protein in sweat. Nature Biomedical Engineering, 2023, 7(10): 1293-1306.
26. Yang L, Wang H, Abdullah A M, et al. Direct laser writing of the porous graphene foam for multiplexed electrochemical sweat sensors. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 2023, 15(29): 34332-34342.
27. Wang M, Yang Y, Min J, et al. A wearable electrochemical biosensor for the monitoring of metabolites and nutrients. Nature Biomedical Engineering, 2022, 6(11): 1225-1235.
28. Shirzaei Sani E, Xu C, Wang C, et al. A stretchable wireless wearable bioelectronic system for multiplexed monitoring and combination treatment of infected chronic wounds. Science Advances, 2023, 9(12): eadf7388.
29. Zhao X, You X, Wang Z, et al. Noninvasive diagnosis of early-stage chronic kidney disease and monitoring of the hemodialysis process in clinical practice via exhaled breath analysis using an ultrasensitive flexible NH3 sensor assisted by pattern recognition. ACS Sensors, 2025, 10(4): 2823-2839.
30. Hu C, Zhou J, Zhang J, et al. A structural color hydrogel for diagnosis of halitosis and screening of periodontitis. Materials Horizons, 2024, 11(2): 519-530.
31. Wu Z, Wang H, Ding Q, et al. A self-powered, rechargeable, and wearable hydrogel patch for wireless gas detection with extraordinary performance. Advanced Functional Materials, 2023, 33(21): 2300046.
32. Huang W, Ding Q, Wang H, et al. Design of stretchable and self-powered sensing device for portable and remote trace biomarkers detection. Nature Communications, 2023, 14(1): 5221.
33. Zhang H, Yang C, Xia H, et al. Layer-by-layer self-assembled honeycomb structure flexible pressure sensor array for gait analysis and motion posture recognition with the assistance of the ResNet-50 neural network. ACS Sensors, 2025, 10(3): 2358-2366.
34. Wu X, Liang Y, Lu L, et al. Fabric-based flexible pressure sensor arrays with ultra-wide pressure range for lower limb motion capture system. Research, 2025, 8: 0835.
35. Li J, Wu K, Xiao J, et al. Flexible multichannel muscle impedance sensors for collaborative human-machine interfaces. Science Advances, 2025, 11(26): eadv3359.
36. Li T, Zhao H, Li H, et al. Dual-modal stretchable sensing patches for in situ monitoring of electromyography and acoustic myography. Advanced Functional Materials, 2024, 34(51): 2409780.
37. Yan X, Liu Z, Fu Y, et al. Liquid metal@ silk fibroin peptide particles initiated hydrogels with high toughness, adhesion, and conductivity for portable and continuous electrophysiological monitoring. Advanced Functional Materials, 2025, 35(22): 2420240.
38. Chen X, Li R, Niu G, et al. Porous graphene foam composite-based dual-mode sensors for underwater temperature and subtle motion detection. Chemical Engineering Journal, 2022, 444: 136631.
39. Ahmed S, Momin M, Ren J, et al. Stick-and-play bioadhesive hairlike electrodes for chronic EEG recording on human. npj Biomedical Innovations, 2025, 2(1): 9.
40. Lin X, Ou Z, Wang X, et al. Self-adhesive and biocompatible dry electrodes with conformal contact to skin for epidermal electrophysiology. Interdisciplinary Materials, 2024, 3(5): 775-790.

Journal of Biomedical Engineering

Latest ArticlesResearch progress on flexible wearable sensors for health monitoring

Abstract Full text Figures/Tables Video References Cited by

Format

Content