According to a Wall Street Journal report (unfortunately firewalled), hospitals are pointing a very long finger at medical device manufacturers for not updating software and leaving devices open to breaches. Yet the manufacturers readily cite FDA’s most recent guidance as prohibiting software updates and security patches without resubmitting their devices for approval–something a spokesperson for the FDA denies as long as the update is for cybersecurity only. If the draft guidance issued in June is actually finalized, it will go the distance in helping manufacturers and hospitals. Hospitals Say Device Manufacturers Resist Boosting Cybersecurity (iHealthBeat)... Continue Reading
Search Results for sensor patches
Is your body temperature looking hot? Soon you’ll be able to find out!
...fitness tag”) and stored alongside the image, with the tag and/or sensor readings used to organize and sort the images. Other types of sensors such as a GPS locator, ambient temperature sensor, or light detector, could also be integrated. In this way the tag could be a result of internal biological data combined with external factors such as current position. As regards healthcare applications, the technology could serve as a non-threatening way for healthcare professionals and clinicians to obtain vital signs readings from patients, either in person or remotely. It could be a useful addition to face-to-face or online psychotherapy... Continue Reading
No more lying through your teeth, indeed!
[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/tooth-sensor.jpg” thumb_width=”200″ /]By: Toni Bunting A sensor embedded in your tooth could tell doctors if you have defied medical advice to give up smoking or to eat less! Built into a tiny circuit board, the sensor includes an accelerometer that transmits data to a smartphone. So from each tell-tale jaw motion pattern, the software can work out how much chewing, teeth grinding, smoking, coughing, talking or (…okay I’ll stop there!) that you are doing. The device can be fitted into dentures or a dental brace, and the team at the National Taiwan University in Taipei plan to miniaturise it... Continue Reading
Biosensor tattoo helps avoid extreme fatigue in athletes
[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/biosensor-tattoo.jpg” thumb_width=”150″ /]A new biosensor, worn on the skin like a temporary tattoo, provides an early warning to athletes that energy stores in their muscles are running low. The device works by measuring lactate levels in sweat, which allows athletes to evaluate their workouts and adjust the level of intensity. Reported in the current issue of Analytical Chemistry (subscription required), tests on 10 human volunteers have shown that the sensor can continuously measure real-time lactate levels in sweat during exercise. This method of monitoring has clear benefits, as lactate is usually measured using blood samples which are not only... Continue Reading
Smart flooring that can simplify alerting
...replacement (as opposed for example to bed sensors). There would also seem to be the benefit that the output could be used for ADL (activities of daily living) monitoring too (though there is no mention of equipment that this Finnish company provides that could do that). Clearly this will potentially have other applications in addition to monitoring frail people – the website, under ‘ongoing developments’ also mentions: gaming solutions elevator systems pedestrian counting systems energy optimisation systems prisons intruder and flood detection systems. This seems a most exciting addition to the array of sensors available, particularly because it requires nothing... Continue Reading
No more lying through your teeth?
A sensor embedded in your tooth could tell doctors if you have defied medical advice to give up smoking or to eat less! Built into a tiny circuit board, the sensor includes an accelerometer that transmits data to a smartphone. So from each tell-tale jaw motion pattern, the software can work out how much chewing, teeth grinding, smoking, coughing, talking or (…okay I’ll stop there!) that you are doing. The device can be fitted into dentures or a dental brace, and the team at the National Taiwan University in Taipei plan to miniaturise it further to fit into a cavity... Continue Reading
Pressure-sensitive electronic ‘skin’
[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/skin-monitor-130513.jpg” thumb_width=”175″ /]A thin pressure sensor under development by a team at Stanford University has the potential to impact robotics, health tech devices, smartwatches and prosthetics. A transistor made of a flexible polymer semiconductor is actually more sensitive than skin, detecting temperature, pressure and humidity, and works even when curved. At a pulse point, it not only detected pulse but also “a second, weaker wave of blood being bounced back from the extremities, and a third wave that can provide a measurement of the stiffness of the artery. Stiff arteries can be a sign of damage from diabetes, or... Continue Reading
O2 to stop selling telecare & telehealth in the UK
...of the only ways to get to scale early on is to buy up or partner with existing larger service centres - not an easy task in the UK. Withdrawal after Q1 could suggest a hard commercial decision based on initial signup figures from the supermarkets and existing high street presence. Certainly, existing smartphone/app combinations and the prospects of innovative wrist devices with additional sensor options could potentially move the consumer market along in future. I suspect there are also some business model issues to think through here as well - who are products/services aimed at, what problems are they... Continue Reading
Apple-ologists discern ‘new’ interest in health tech and telehealth
...working in secrecy on the long-awaited iWatch. Talent’s been snatched from telehealth sensor companies AccuVein (vein mapping), the recently defunct C8 MediSensors (blood monitoring), and Senseonics (embedded sensor for blood glucose). And they are most interested in sleep tracking. iWatch’s novelty emerges as Apple taps sensor and fitness experts Apple’s been interested all along in healthcare–and others have been interested in Apple No surprise to TTA readers, as you’ve been tracking Apple’s and competition’s healthcare moves along with us from the start. the iPad in hospitals and their preliminary tests starting in early 2011 when tablets were new and untried... Continue Reading
New York, New York…it’s a health tech town (Part 1)
...to model their healthcare behaviors in a better way using a ‘third person’ device. It’s currently testing with non-compliant diabetics and scheduled to launch in September. Other highlights: Three big trends in healthcare innovation via Health 2.0’s co-chairman Matthew Holt: data mobility (Blue Button downloads), trackers (consumer engagement using sensor-based technology) and EMR usability (doctors moving away from EMRs which are difficult to use). How entrepreneurs can mitigate risk from Goodwin Procter’s Jeff Klein (listen to your legal counsel!): Know the customer’s purchasing cycle…their budget availability…their pressures…and how they acquire their customers Your product has to address their problems (above)... Continue Reading
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