A new device aims to detect acute exacerbations of chronic conditions. The wearable monitoring device contains multiple types of sensors, enabling faster and more accurate detection of exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and chronic conditions like asthma, heart disease and other inflammatory disorders. Eventually, the technology may help everyday people monitor their overall health and attune to early warning signs of illness.

The device will collect multiple streams of physiological data that are time-stamped, enabling the research team to better understand how these functions are linked — and how variations in these couplings might mark a change in health status.

A major innovation of the team’s device is that it is multimodal, meaning it measures multiple physiological parameters. Many existing wearables, including medical-grade devices, capture a single type of data: pulse or heart rate, for example. By looking at only one data category, these devices fail to provide a holistic view of the wearer’s health. To fill that gap, this device will contain sensors monitoring heart rate, respiratory, and gait data to identify changes in whole person health.

It will also integrate data from an electronic nose — a passive sensor that monitors chemicals excreted from the skin or breath, which are rich in physiological data. This additional layer of information will enhance the device’s diagnostic capacity and provide an increasingly complete picture of a person’s health. (Image credit: Craig Chandler/University of Nebraska–Lincoln)

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Topics:
Medical Sensors Wearables

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