Did you know? Origami is currently used in medicine

The Japanese art of folding has become an unexpected source of inspiration in the design of advanced medical devices. Although we usually think of it in terms of decorative figures, origami is, in essence, a geometric system capable of transforming a flat sheet into complex three-dimensional structures through precise folding patterns. That same logic —folding to take up limited space and then accurately unfolding— is what is currently driving a new generation of biomedical technologies.

Its origins date back centuries in Japan, where paper was a valuable material and its use was initially linked to religious ceremonies and court life. One of the best-known stories associated with origami is that of the girl of a thousand cranes, a story linked to Sadako Sasaki, who, after falling ill due to radiation from the Hiroshima bomb, began to fold paper into the shape of cranes in the hope of recovering. Thus, in the Japanese tradition, those thousand cranes were established as a universal symbol of desire for a better future. And, in fact, that story has proven to be not so far removed from scientific reality.

A study published in 2017 reviewed the state of the art of medical devices based on origami structures and analysed their applications over the past decade. Researchers highlight its usefulness in fields as diverse as interventional cardiology, vascular stent grafts, gastrointestinal microsurgery, encapsulation devices, surgical microgrippers, microfluidics or controlled drug delivery systems.

These devices can be inserted into the body in a compact format, through a catheter or small incision, and then unfolded into a larger volume or a specific functional shape. This reduces the invasiveness, improves anatomical adaptation, and minimizes tissue damage.

The study also points out that progress does not depend only on geometric design, but also on suitable biocompatible materials, precise manufacturing techniques and computational models capable of predicting how folding and expansion will occur. Challenges remain —from production at scale to clinical deployment— but research is progressing rapidly.