Skin marking for indicating subdermal chip

#The present invention relates to a skin marking to indicate the presence of a subdermal chip.

#In recent years, miniaturized chips have been developed that can be implanted under the skin of a subject and that can hold detailed identification data, including complete medical records of the subject. Typically, such chips, once they are implanted, are dormant until activated by an external scanner, at which time they emit a radio frequency signal that can be picked up by the scanner. In operation, an implanted chip may provide hospitals and emergency workers with critical medical information on a subject. For example, if a subject is brought into an emergency room unconscious, or if a subject is an Alzheimer's patient who wanders, the chip may provide everything from basic identification and medical insurance data to vital information about allergies and medications. Moreover, chips may be implanted in pets to provide identification data.

#A problem that may arise with implanted chips is that until implanted subdermal chips become more widely used, persons, such as emergency room workers, who could use the information contained in an implanted chip, may be unaware of the chip's presence and may not think to expose the subject to a scanner to read the information. If a subject is unconscious, an Alzheimer's patient or an amnesiac or a nonhuman, the subject will not be able to notify others of the presence of the chip. As smaller chips are developed, it is less likely that there will be scars or other indications that a chip has been implanted. Accordingly, there is a great need for a designation to let others know that a subject has an implanted subdermal chip.

#FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of skin and subdermal regions of a subject having an implanted chip and an external marking in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

#As shown schematically in FIG. 1, a chip 10 is implanted under surface 12 of the skin of a subject. In accordance with the present invention, the surface of the skin includes an external marking 14 that indicates the presence of the subdermal chip.

#The subdermal chip in accordance with the present invention can by any device implanted under the skin of a subject to store information in a form that can be read by an external device such as a scanner. For example, an implantable device has been developed by Applied Digital Solutions and marketed under the name of VeriChip. (See, for example, the Applied Digital Solutions Web site at www.adsx.com.) The Verichip device is about the size of a grain of rice and is implanted by way of a needle-like instrument in an outpatient procedure. The chip is activated by an external scanner and emits a radio frequency signal containing a verification number. The verification number is sent to a data storage site to obtain detailed information on the subject. It is anticipated that as the technology develops, such devices will be made even smaller and will contain more detailed information that can be immediately accessed.

#The external marking in accordance with the present invention can be any permanent or removable mark imprinted on the surface of the skin of the subject or embedded in the dermal layer of the skin so that it is externally visible or detectable. Preferably, the external marking is imprinted or embedded in the skin so that it is not washed or scraped off during normal activities of the subject. For example, the external marking may be in the form of a tattoo, that is, in the form of particles or droplets, such as, for example, ink particles or ink droplets, embedded in the dermal layer of the skin of the subject.