Smart vest for respiratory rate monitoring of COPD patients based on non-contact capacitive sensing

In this paper, a first approach to the design of a portable device for non-contact monitoring of respiratory rate by capacitive sensing is presented. The sensing system is integrated into a smart vest for an untethered, low-cost and comfortable breathing monitoring of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) patients during the rest period between respiratory rehabilitation exercises at home. To provide an extensible solution to the remote monitoring using this sensor and other devices, the design and preliminary development of an e-Health platform based on the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) paradigm is also presented. In order to validate the proposed solution, two quasi-experimental studies have been developed, comparing the estimations with respect to the golden standard. In a first study with healthy subjects, the mean value of the respiratory rate error, the standard deviation of the error and the correlation coefficient were 0.01 breaths per minute (bpm), 0.97 bpm and 0.995 (p < 0.00001), respectively. In a second study with COPD patients, the values were -0.14 bpm, 0.28 bpm and 0.9988 (p < 0.0000001), respectively. The results for the rest period show the technical and functional feasibility of the prototype and serve as a preliminary validation of the device for respiratory rate monitoring of patients with COPD.Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación PI15/00306Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación DTS15/00195Junta de Andalucía PI-0010-2013Junta de Andalucía PI-0041-2014Junta de Andalucía PIN-0394-201

Mobile Health Technologies

Mobile Health Technologies, also known as mHealth technologies, have emerged, amongst healthcare providers, as the ultimate Technologies-of-Choice for the 21st century in delivering not only transformative change in healthcare delivery, but also critical health information to different communities of practice in integrated healthcare information systems. mHealth technologies nurture seamless platforms and pragmatic tools for managing pertinent health information across the continuum of different healthcare providers. mHealth technologies commonly utilize mobile medical devices, monitoring and wireless devices, and/or telemedicine in healthcare delivery and health research. Today, mHealth technologies provide opportunities to record and monitor conditions of patients with chronic diseases such as asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Diseases (COPD) and diabetes mellitus. The intent of this book is to enlighten readers about the theories and applications of mHealth technologies in the healthcare domain

Hardware Prototype for Wrist-Worn Simultaneous Monitoring of Environmental, Behavioral, and Physiological Parameters

We designed a low-cost wrist-worn prototype for simultaneously measuring environmental, behavioral, and physiological domains of influencing factors in healthcare. Our prototype continuously monitors ambient elements (sound level, toxic gases, ultraviolet radiation, air pressure, temperature, and humidity), personal activity (motion tracking and body positioning using gyroscope, magnetometer, and accelerometer), and vital signs (skin temperature and heart rate). An innovative three-dimensional hardware, based on the multi-physical-layer approach is introduced. Using board-to-board connectors, several physical hardware layers are stacked on top of each other. All of these layers consist of integrated and/or add-on sensors to measure certain domain (environmental, behavioral, or physiological). The prototype includes centralized data processing, transmission, and visualization. Bi-directional communication is based on Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and can connect to smartphones as well as smart cars and smart homes for data analytic and adverse-event alerts. This study aims to develop a prototype for simultaneous monitoring of the all three areas for monitoring of workplaces and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients with a concentration on technical development and validation rather than clinical investigation. We have implemented 6 prototypes which have been tested by 5 volunteers. We have asked the subjects to test the prototype in a daily routine in both indoor (workplaces and laboratories) and outdoor. We have not imposed any specific conditions for the tests. All presented data in this work are from the same prototype. Eleven sensors measure fifteen parameters from three domains. The prototype delivers the resolutions of 0.1 part per million (PPM) for air quality parameters, 1 dB, 1 index, and 1 °C for sound pressure level, UV, and skin temperature, respectively. The battery operates for 12.5 h under the maximum sampling rates of sensors without recharging. The final expense does not exceed 133€. We validated all layers and tested the entire device with a 75 min recording. The results show the appropriate functionalities of the prototype for further development and investigations

Wearable and BAN Sensors for Physical Rehabilitation and eHealth Architectures

The demographic shift of the population towards an increase in the number of elderly citizens, together with the sedentary lifestyle we are adopting, is reflected in the increasingly debilitated physical health of the population. The resulting physical impairments require rehabilitation therapies which may be assisted by the use of wearable sensors or body area network sensors (BANs). The use of novel technology for medical therapies can also contribute to reducing the costs in healthcare systems and decrease patient overflow in medical centers. Sensors are the primary enablers of any wearable medical device, with a central role in eHealth architectures. The accuracy of the acquired data depends on the sensors; hence, when considering wearable and BAN sensing integration, they must be proven to be accurate and reliable solutions. This book is a collection of works focusing on the current state-of-the-art of BANs and wearable sensing devices for physical rehabilitation of impaired or debilitated citizens. The manuscripts that compose this book report on the advances in the research related to different sensing technologies (optical or electronic) and body area network sensors (BANs), their design and implementation, advanced signal processing techniques, and the application of these technologies in areas such as physical rehabilitation, robotics, medical diagnostics, and therapy

General Conceptual Framework of Future Wearables in Healthcare: Unified, Unique, Ubiquitous, and Unobtrusive (U4) for Customized Quantified Output

We concentrate on the importance and future conceptual development of wearable devices as the major means of personalized healthcare. We discuss and address the role of wearables in the new era of healthcare in proactive medicine. This work addresses the behavioral, environmental, physiological, and psychological parameters as the most effective domains in personalized healthcare, and the wearables are categorized according to the range of measurements. The importance of multi-parameter, multi-domain monitoring and the respective interactions are further discussed and the generation of wearables based on the number of monitoring area(s) is consequently formulated

Tecnologias pervasivas da saúde : como está o futuro a ser preparado pelas empresas de software em Portugal?

The present work addresses the software industry aiming to evaluate its preparation for the opportunity that the healthcare area offers in terms of pervasive healthcare technologies, as a perspective for the growth of the market. Phenomena such as chronic disease growth and survival, increasing longevity, active ageing, remote patient monitoring, the big data of healthcare and the globalization of the smartphone, provide growth opportunities for the software industry and indicate a path by which where societies are orienting themselves and giving special importance. Following a literature review, after a general introduction to the major themes of economic development and globalization, and a survey of current technologies and the evolution of successful industries in Portugal, it was developed an analysis to the software industry and the results of a survey of associates of an Industry Association. The study concludes that while there are positive aspects that may help the software industry to be prepared for the opportunities that the health sector offers, there are key elements that will have to be improved not only in clusters activities as in knowledge of health and focus on exports that will have to be improved so that industry can be successful in this field.O presente trabalho aborda a indústria do software pretendendo avaliar a sua preparação para a oportunidade que a área da saúde oferece em termos de tecnologias pervasivas de saúde numa perspetiva de crescimento do mercado. Fenómenos como o aumento das doenças crónicas, a crescente longevidade, bem como o aparecimento de soluções tecnológicas extraordinariamente sofisticadas, oferece oportunidades de crescimento à indústria do software e indicam um caminho por onde as sociedades estão a orientar-se e a dar especial importância. Após uma pesquisa bibliográfica, que permitiu um levantamento das tecnologias atuais e da evolução das indústrias bem-sucedidas em Portugal, desenvolveu-se uma análise à indústria do software a partir dos resultados de um inquérito dirigido aos associados de uma Associação representativa da indústria. Do estudo conclui-se que embora haja aspetos positivos que poderão ajudar a indústria do software a preparar-se para as oportunidades que o sector da saúde oferece, há elementos essenciais que terão que ser melhorados não só na orgânica produtiva com base em clusters, mas também no conhecimento da área da saúde e enfoque nas exportações que terão que ser melhoradas para que a indústria possa ser bem-sucedida neste ramo.Programa Doutoral em Ciências e Tecnologias da Saúd

University of Nebraska At Omaha Department of Biomechanics Annual Report 2019-2020

This report contains: A letter from the Director: Dr. Nick Stergiou Articles on research that impacts the community Article about the Movcentr Impact Articles on Expanding horizons Article on the people of UNO Biomechanics Student Centered articles Articles on Community Engagement and Fun.https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/nbcfnewsletter/1014/thumbnail.jp

University of Nebraska At Omaha Department of Biomechanics Annual Report 2019-2020

This report contains: A letter from the Director: Dr. Nick Stergiou Articles on research that impacts the community Article about the Movcentr Impact Articles on Expanding horizons Article on the people of UNO Biomechanics Student Centered articles Articles on Community Engagement and Fun.https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/nbcfnewsletter/1014/thumbnail.jp

Strategic Intelligence Monitor on Personal Health Systems (SIMPHS): Market Structure and Innovation Dynamics

Personal Health Systems (PHS) and Remote Patient Monitoring and Treatment (RMT) have the potential to alter the way healthcare is provided by increasing the quantity and quality of care. This report explores the current status of PHS and, more specifically of the RMT market in Europe. It addresses the question of how these technologies can contribute facing some of the challenges standing in front of the European healthcare delivery systems causes by higher demand pressures through chronic diseases and demographic change combined with diminishing resources for health care. An uptake and diffusion of these services would potentially lead to benefits through a reduction in death rates, and avoid recurring hospitalisation in a cost-effective manner. Yet the report identifies different categories of barriers hampering a full deployment of RMT in Europe. In the concluding part the reports provides a number of tentative policy options specifically aimed at fostering EU-wide deployment of RMT/PHS.JRC.DDG.J.4-Information Societ