Sensor Technology Is Revolutionizing Healthcare: Comprehensive view

With the rising importance of Fitbits, smartwatches, and IoT, sensor technology is starting to have a great impact on healthtech.

The market for medical wearables is estimated to hit $12.1 billion by 2021, according to a recent study by Markets and Markets. These wearables go far beyond fitness tracking. New devices can monitor for heart attacks, signs of stroke, and measure and control insulin levels for diabetics.

Sensors and wearables are doing their part to make people healthier, medical providers smarter and more efficient, and healthcare more affordable. Here are three examples of how sensor technology is revolutionizing the healthcare industry.

1. The Kardia Heart Health Monitor

What if a smartwatch could detect a heart attack before it even happened? The folks at AliveCor asked this question and came up with Kardia — a mobile app and sensor that could possibly save your life.

Kardia is an EKG health sensor that is built into an Apple Watch strap. It monitors a patient’s heart health and keeps track of the data through a mobile app. If the data detects a possible heart arrhythmia, it prompts the user to record an EKG.

The device is particularly useful for patients with a high-risk for heart attacks or those who have recently undergone heart surgery. It provides peace of mind as patients are able to monitor their heart health and get real-time feedback. Allowing the patient to perform their own EKG anytime they want without having to go to a doctor’s office or emergency room saves time and money for both them and their healthcare provider.

2. Diabetes Management From Diabnext

Diabnext offers a range of products to help people manage diabetes. The company is using Artificial Intelligence combined with cloud technology and connected devices to help diabetic patients.

The Diabnext Clipsulin device keeps track of insulin dosages and transmits the information to an app on the user’s mobile phone. This eliminates the need for the patient to manually record insulin intake throughout the day in a logbook and provides optimal diabetes management. The company’s Gluconext gadget attaches to a patient’s glucose meter and updates the app with real-time glucose levels and testing results.

Diabnext has come up with their own version of Ironman’s J.A.R.V.I.S. (Just A Rather Very Intelligent System) interface that connects doctors and patients. Doctors will be able to see and monitor a diabetes patient’s glucose and insulin levels through the system and provide recommendations without the patient having to actually come into the office.

3. Helping Alzheimer’s Patients Stay Safe at Home

In March of this year, AT&T announced that it had partnered with Clairvoyant Networks to produce healthcare wearables that could greatly benefit elderly people suffering from cognitive diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, and their caregivers.

Theora Care is a smartwatch device that sends patient data over a secure AT&T network connection to a caregiver. The device can alert the caregiver if the patient strays outside of a designated “safe” zone and allows for two-way audio communications.

The technology was developed by caregivers who know first-hand the frustrations and fears of taking care of Alzheimer’s patients. The device provides peace of mind to the caregiver while allowing the patient to stay in their home as opposed to a nursing home or the assisted living community.

The Future of Sensor Technology in Healthcare

Interest in healthcare software and app development for wearable devices continues to rise as the benefits become more and more realized in these types of real-life examples.

By giving patients more control over their own health and extensive knowledge about their disease and symptoms, these devices are reducing the amount of time and money spent on expensive medical procedures and doctor’s visits. Plus, doctors and medical experts have access to real-time information about their patients, which helps them to be more efficient.

Sensor technology could very well prove to be the best medicine for making healthcare more affordable and accessible for everyone.

by iTechArt