Wearable technology is rapidly advancing field; numerous research groups have already demonstrated several clinical applications. With the launch of the Apple Watch this year, wearable technology is now a reality, and that’s only the beginning. Small sensors can be embedded into articles of clothing, jewelry and accessories or directly attached to the body, enabling potential widespread access to a new type of medical database- clinical data specific to an individual during “normal” daily activities. Widespread use of such devices could drastically transform medical care. For starters, wearable tech has the ability to track vital information (such as heart rate, blood pressure, and stress) throughout the day, during sedentary, routine and stressful activities. Instead of relying on measurements obtained solely during clinical visits with a healthcare provider, wearable devices can collect data between visits, potentially enabling faster responses to treatment and/or specific tailoring of medications, activities, and follow-up studies. Imagine a future where your wearable device alerts you to a medical issue and contacts your doctor for an appointment. If it’s a more serious alert, your wearable app contacts a service like Pager.com or your local hospital to intervene in time. The use of wearable technology has been researched for numerous applications but perhaps one of the most exciting is in the treatment and prevention of strokes. Studies have shown that nearly 80% of all strokes are preventable. The prevention of strokes begins with the management of key risk factors– blood pressure, stress, smoking and atrial fibrillation. And when a stroke occurs, time is crucial as immediate treatment can and does save lives. So a device that can rapidly detect physiologic alterations and alert the wearer and/or health care provider may prove to be as essential as having a fire detector in your home. Wearable devices are no longer the stuff of science fiction. A group of Samsung engineers recently proposed an early stroke section prototype called the Early Detection Sensor and Algorithm Package (EDSAP) which utilizes wearable brainwave sensors. Whether or not wearable technology will take hold is not the question, the real question is how sophisticated it will become and how healthcare data privacy will be safeguarded.
Wearable Technology – Someday your gadgets might save your life