5 vital signs, one ‘heavyweight’ device on the back of your Moto X smartphone

[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/Vitals-product.jpg” thumb_width=”150″ /]Are we getting to the ‘tricorder’ through the smartphone mod back door? Smartphone clip-ons to measure a vital sign are nothing new–the early 2010s AliveCor device was a snap-on case for the iPhone containing EKG electrodes, now replaced with the Kardia Mobile and KardiaBand for the Apple Watch. But the Vital USA Moto Mod has to be the heavyweight champ of clip-on ‘mods’. It is for the Motorola Moto Z only, and the reveal at CES was by Lenovo, the official global distributor. Release (PDF).

The Vital Moto Mod measures five vital signs–heart rate, respiratory rate, blood oxygen saturation (SpO2), non-contact core body temperature, and systolic/diastolic blood pressure–through primarily a finger cuff and sensors. For BP, the cuff uses sensors and a novel inflatable bladder. Vital USA claims that running through all five readings takes between two to three minutes. The results download to the HIPAA-compliant Vital app which will be available through the Google App Store. The app also guides the user through how to take one or more of the vital signs. The Vital Moto Mod is not yet FDA cleared or CE Marked. 

As CNet remarked, the mod is huge and not exactly something you slip into your back pocket. They didn’t have the opportunity to check it for accuracy against other standard medical devices. It will be available after April 8 for $395 (£290).

One questionable aspect of the website is the consistent usage and demonstration of ‘vital signs monitoring’ and confirmation of its accuracy when in the FAQs, under “Is the product FDA approved”, it states that “this is a health and general wellness product. The Vital Moto Mod is not a medical device and therefore not currently regulated by the FDA.” 

However, announced on the 24th was their partnership with Partners Connected Health of Boston to validate the readings in a clinical trial that will compare the Vital Moto Mod to predicate medical devices, which is preliminary to FDA approval. Release

It appears that the US company, HQ’d in Boca Raton, FL, has an Irish parent, ARC Connected Health.

[grow_thumb image=”https://telecareaware.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/sensoscan.jpg” thumb_width=”150″ /]An earlier, less clunky entrant, which this Editor first saw at Connected Health 2015 is the Sensogram SensoSCAN finger cover monitor which is a 4-in-1, measuring blood pressure, heart rate, blood oxygen saturation (SPO2), and respiration rate (but not temperature). Measurements are viewable on a screen readout. It is currently available for $499 through their website and is in the process of FDA clearance. In development is the VitalBand, which adds fall detection, medication reminders, goal notifications, and pre-programmed contacts to the SensoSCAN’s four vital signs. Data is stored on both devices and uploaded to their app via Bluetooth.

This Editor is impressed with the idea of consumers not having to work with multiple devices but sees two definite drawbacks: size of the Vital Moto Mod and the cost of both up to $499. They are most useful to those who have to monitor multiple vitals for chronic conditions, yet they are both, at this time, stand-alone, not reimbursable, and not integrated with any major telehealth system. It’s yet to be seen if they will be accepted by telehealth companies (which kit their tablets or hubs with multiple devices), payers, and patients.

Louisville’s Thrive Center showcases senior care technologies (KY)

Louisville, Kentucky is not the place our Readers would put at the top of their minds when thinking about assistive technologies for older adults, but the debut last week of The Thrive Center may change that. It’s a public-private partnership between the Commonwealth of Kentucky and Louisville Metro with private technology and senior living companies. It showcases technologies transforming senior care on a permanent, updating basis and demonstrated in use. 

The Center includes in their 7,500 square foot setting Samsung technologies integrated into a full-size kitchen, bathroom, living room and bedroom; AppliedVR virtual reality headsets; headphones from Eversound; brain fitness software from Posit Science; and music-as-medicine solutions from SingFit and wellness apps from EVŌ. The opening theme is assistance for memory care, which implies that the exhibits will be shifted to different themes in the future.

Companies which helped to establish Thrive include CDW Healthcare (IT), Samsung, Intel, Ergotron, Lenovo, HP/Aruba, Kindred Healthcare (post-acute care) and skilled nursing provider Signature HealthCare. Kindred and Signature are located in Louisville, which is a healthcare hub of the mid-South. It is also the headquarters of Humana and an operations center for Care Innovations–both notably absent from the partner list. CDW releaseSenior Housing News, Thrive Center website, Thrive Center release.