Smart Wearables in the technology industry for 2015 is one that is looking to be a big and profitable market. The technology that these new devices are employing is innovative to say at the least. Smart technology is certainly something that will be the key to the optimal operating of our future society, especially when it comes to healthcare.
The following is a small look at some of the top wearables that can be found and are engineered for the healthcare industry. Here are some of those products to be on the lookout for during the course of 2015.
Intelligent Asthma Management by Health Care Originals
ADAMM is a wearable technology by Health Care Originals that helps understand and monitor your asthma more easily. It is a three-part solution: a wearable to detect precursor symptoms of asthma, a smartphone app for the management plan basics and a web portal to detect the treatment efficacy. 300 Million people globally who have asthma can benefit from this wearable. The device and the app will be able to alert you when you experiencing an asthma situation, journaling, treatment plans, displays, and the tracking and information on the treating of symptoms. Health Care Originals is a leading digital health startup, integrating IoT technologies to empower everyone through improved understanding and management of their health and medical conditions. With ADAMM they have won the WT | Wearable Technologies Innovation World Cup 2015/16 in the category of Healthcare & Wellness.
Of the healthcare wearables that are on the market for 2015, the Valedo Back Therapy is probably one that will be embraced the most, especially those who love to be gamers. Valedo is engineered for those who have problems with lower back health. It has video game like interactions and interface that give the user exercises to do. It is very similar to like the games that you would see on a home video gaming system such as the Wii and Wii Fit.
A device is attached to the person’s back and the smart sensors are able to store data which can then be accessed through the companion app. It is run on BlueTooth Smart technology but at the current time can only be run on any iOS device such as an iPad or iPhone. It is being known that a lot of healthcare facilities are starting to embrace the Valedo and their course of action when it comes to lower back pain and treatment.
The product here by Quell Relief is one of the new healthcare wearables and smart technology who really take functionality to the utmost. Not only is this knee brace type device engineered to give you the stability that you expect out of a brace but it is also embedded with the market required sensors that allow for smart keeping of information that can be accessed through a companion app. This product likes to pride itself on being able to give the person the optimal relief when it comes to a knee brace.
The innovative technology here is also very nice. It is BlueTooth compatible and it is compatible with any iOS operating system for access to the companion app. The battery will give you pain relief for over 40 hours before having to be charged again. There is an electrode that is placed inside of the brace and then you strap it on. Push the outside button where the electrode is and then it is activated. This certainly is a state of the art product and a game changer in the wearable healthcare and smart technology industry.
The HealthPatch MD is a new technology for healthcare professionals to be able to keep tabs on the vital information of their patients. The company behind this product is called Vital Connect. The HealthPatch MD is a biosensor that is reusable and it is embedded in a patch that can be disposed of. It has ECG electrodes and also has a 3 axis accelerometer that helps with keeping track of heart rate, breathing, temperature, steps, and even detects body position in case if a person has fallen.
The HealthPatch MD is BlueTooth capable and could be connected to any mobile device in order to look at real time data received through the biosensor. This is a product that will be seen in healthcare facilities all around the world during the course of 2015. The HealthPatch MD has received FDA clearance in the United States and has also been given regulatory approval throughout Europe. This product is also registered in Canada as well.
Proteus Discover by Proteus Digital Health is comprised of ingestible sensors, a small wearable sensor patch, an application on a mobile device and a provider portal. Once activated, it unlocks never-before-seen insight into patient health patterns and medication treatment effectiveness, leading to more informed healthcare decisions for everyone involved. Patients can easily monitor their medication-taking patterns on their mobile device and physicians have access to objective data that enables them to initiate, tritrate and eliminate medication. Where can Proteus Discover make the biggest impact? With high-risk populations, including patients with hypertension and diabetes. It´s proven that patients using the smart patch achieved significantly greater reduction in blood pressure and LDL cholesterol and were more likely to reach their BP.
Smart Stop by Chrono Therapeutics
Smart Stop by Chrono Therapeutics is a smart device that is aimed at helping people to stop smoking. The Smart Stop is embedded with sensors that will sense changes in the body and put into motion algorithms that sense that a person is craving for a cigarette and nicotine. It will then deliver medication to the person so that craving can be curtailed.
The Smart Stop has a companion app that gives a person information about quitting and coaching them in being able to stop their harmful habit. This wearable device will certainly be another one of those game changers in the coming years. Not much is really known about the Smart Start but consumers can go to the company website at chronothera.com to get product updates and other important news.
Northwestern University and University of Illinois at Urbanna-Champaign
Why would Northwestern University and the University of Illinois at Urbanna-Champaign have anything to do with this healthcare wearables list? These two schools have come together and developed a healthcare monitoring smart technology that is only five square centimeters wide. According to the engineers on this project, the monitor associated with the technology is so small that it cannot be seen and looks like actual skin applied to a person. Crystals that are in the device will be able to track things such as temperature changes which then will let a person know that something may be wrong.
The engineers say that the new crystal technology that they are using is groundbreaking and it will allow for around the clock monitoring of such things as cardiovascular health and the health of their skin. More and more research is being done by these two esteemed universities and we could certainly see more and more innovative products and technologies arise due to their partnership.
Google has been able to see itself in just about every other part of technology these days so why not the smart wearables for healthcare market. Google has been able to have smart contact lenses that are made for people who suffer from diabetes and those who simply wear glasses. Google has partnered with the Swiss based pharmaceutical company in Novartis here.
The technology is engineered to take the tears in a person’s eye and measure the glucose levels that are present. For people who wear glasses, the lens would be engineered to what the companies say is ‘to restore the eye’s natural autofocus’. This product has been around and getting the ending fine tunes in development over the past couple of months so 2015 could see this product becoming more widely used and more aware to consumers and the public.
Cloud based technology is starting to become more and more of a part of today’s internet world. Here is the Vitaliti by Cloud DX which uses cloud based technology to allow for a person to access a companion app that keeps track of all of your vitals. The Vitaliti drapes across a person’s neck and has two sensors that attach to the front that record information. It has a patented technology called Cloud Diagnostics which checks for heart rate, respiration, blood pressure, oxygen, movement, and temperature.
That information is stored and then the app will give you information that will help alleviate and help for better symptoms. The app will help you with information on mobility exercises, how good your posture should be, and ways to eliminate stress. It is BlueTooth capable and iOS and Android compatible. The Vitaliti is a crowd funded product and people can donate and learn about a possible profit sharing program for its expected launch at clouddx.com. The Vitialiti is also one of the products that will be competing in the upcoming Qualcomm Tricorder XPrize which awards a total of $10 million across three teams and products to help with the production of the product. The stipulation is that the product must meet 15 health related requirements.
The iTBra by Cyrcadia Health is a smart bra that is able to keep track of breast health. Sensors that are embedded in the bra keep track of the conditions and rythyms in the breast tissue to alert of the possibility of cancer. The companion app gives information that has been recorded and also has a coaching and information section that gives a person information about optimal breast health and care.
The iTBra has been tested on over 500 patients and the information came back to a 87 percent success rate. This is another crowd funded project that is still in the process of looking for investors. Anyone can go to www.cyrcadiahealth.com and learn more about the iTBra and also learn about how you can invest in the product. The iTBra will also be at the upcoming Wearables Technology Conference in Milan later on this month.
Abbott Diabetes Care is a company that is looking to venture into the smart wearables in healthcare industry. They recently received a CE Mark for the FreeStyle Libre System which is a new state of the art glucose monitoring system for people who suffer from diabetes. It is a sensor that is placed on the back of the upper arm for 14 days which reads glucose information. It eliminates the need for the finger prick system that everyone is so used to when it comes to glucose testing.
It is a companion app and smartphone accessible product where then a doctor can read over the information when the patient goes to the doctor. The app will also give information to people about the foods they should be eating and how to help control their diabetes through exercise and proper dieting. Abbott Diabetes Care were one of the speakers at the recent Wearables Technology Conference that took place in Munich, Germany back in February. The FreeStyle Libre System can be seen and purchased through various websites in the United States and throughout Europe.
iSono Health is an American based company that is low profile but could become more well known over the course of 2015. The major smart wearable device for healthcare that they promoting is a wearable sensor that is worn once a month and is placed inside of the bra. It will have an iSono Health companion app and platform where a physician will be to assess any information about the breast that have been recorded by the sensor and monitor. This is a more privately owned company and would have to be contacted to find more information about the product and their services.
Ulcer is something that affects everyone just about as they get older. Scientists believe that inactivity and constant sitting can also be one of the reasons of causing ulcers. The Leaf Healthcare Sensor is designed to alert a person when it is time to turn and do some moving in order to combat no moving around. The tri-axial accelerometer that is in the sensor can monitor the position that a person is in and then help assist them in proper ways to turn. It even works with optimizing tissue pressurization during turning and moving around.
The ulcers that the company is concerned with here are hospital ulcers which are common in assisted living facilities and nursing homes. When the monitor is put on a patient, the caregiver or physician will be given an alert if the person is moving around wrong or if they may need some assistance in moving the proper way. This is a product that is engineered for hospitals and other healthcare facilities but one could certainly see more home based models coming and it could certainly be in the near future.
The QardioCore wearable ECG monitor is an easy to use monitor that straps around the chest. The sensors in it are able to monitor heart health and health status. It is a wireless monitor that does not need any kind of sticky patches or gels. The QardioCore has all of the activity tracking monitor capabilities as well and that information can be seen on a companion app which is iOS and Android compatible along with BlueTooth capability.
The QardioCore is also associated with a cloud based system which allows for a doctor to monitor a patient in real time. This is another new product that is coming out by this company so full scale details about it are not well known. It is being said that sometime during the course of 2015 the product should be available to consumers and will retail at about $449. We are very happy to announce that Qardio will be exhibiting with us at WT | Wearable Technologies Show 2015 MEDICA from November 16-19 in Düsseldorf – Germany.
Embrace is a smart watch style device that monitors all of your activity but is done with medical grade sensors. Some of the technology here are accelerometers, BlueTooth capability and iOS and Android capability for the companion app, gyroscope, USB access, and long life battery. Real time data is sent to the companion app on your smartphone. The app is called the Empatica Mate and has all kinds of information and also gives you alerts and other goals and health information. Another part of society that the Embrace will help is parents who have kids with certain ailments such as epilepsy.
The Embrace monitor can be placed on a child’s wrist when they go to sleep. If something unusual happens like a seizure, an alert is given on a smartphone which tells the parent that the child is in trouble. It is engineered to help save lives. You can purchase this product from the company Indiegogo site for $199. The Embrace and their company execs will be on hand in Milan this month at the upcoming Wearables Technology Conference to be held there. The watch is very nice looking and is actually kind of fashionable looking.
The smart wearables for the healthcare industry is certainly a market that will grow very much over the course of 2015 and on in to the coming future. The technology is certainly innovative and the great thing is that it is getting FDA clearance and other medical clearances from regulatory boards from all over the world. Cloud based technologies are also looking to be playing a big future in the healthcare smart wearables industry.
While some of these technologies are still in development and are just becoming aware to the public, some have been out for a few months. These products though should start to become more aware to the consumer public and start setting the wheels in motion in making 2015 the year of smart wearables especially for the healthcare industry.
