From Wearables to Smart Stickers: The Evolution of Remote Patient Monitoring

From Wearables to Smart Stickers: The Evolution of Remote Patient Monitoring Ashok Gupta

🔑 Key takeaways

• RPM is gaining popularity in healthcare and is expected to evolve in 2023.
• RPM uses a variety of sensors to offer proactive diagnoses and treatments.
• Google, Sensi.AI, and Nobi are leading the way in RPM.
• RPM has the potential to improve care for chronic conditions and revolutionize healthcare.

Remote patient monitoring (RPM) is an increasingly popular technology in the healthcare industry that continuously collects data from sensors to offer more proactive diagnoses and treatments, ultimately improving patient health outcomes. The global Covid-19 pandemic has increased interest in RPM, and in 2023, RPM is expected to evolve into a more advanced form that relies less on wearables and more on passive, ubiquitous sensors.

Digital health company Google recently acquired digital therapeutics startup Sound Life Sciences, which offers an FDA-cleared smartphone app that uses sonar technology to monitor breathing and diagnose sleep apnea, COPD, asthma, anxiety, and other conditions. Verily, Alphabet’s life sciences research organization, has also raised a billion dollars to fund projects focused on precision health.

Israel-based remote care monitoring platform Sensi.AI uses home audio data from sensors like smart speakers and security cameras to detect daily activities and potentially dangerous situations like falls. The company raised a $14 million Series A in early 2022. Belgium-based smart lamp developer Nobi is also working on fall detection using motion detection to turn on lights for users and alert care staff to patient activity. In January 2022, the company raised a $16 million seed round.

Vocal biomarker technology, which uses voice data such as pitch and frequency to detect early symptoms of conditions like Parkinson’s and depression, is also expected to play a role in ambient health monitoring. The vocal biomarker industry is projected to be worth over $5 billion in the next five years, with startups like Ellipsis, Aural Analytics, and Kintsugi working to develop the space.

Physical interaction devices are becoming less invasive, with researchers developing solutions like “smart stickers” that collect data while adhering to the skin. These patches can monitor heart rate, respiration, and other vital signs, and can potentially be used to detect early signs of sepsis.

Ambient health monitoring has the potential to improve care for chronic conditions, such as through the use of sensors that track inhaler usage and provide data on inhaler adherence and patterns of use. These systems have the potential to revolutionize the healthcare industry by continuously collecting data and providing proactive, personalized care, improving patient outcomes, and reducing healthcare costs. One company utilizing RPM innovatively is TheraNow, which provides convenient and reliable online therapeutic services through tele-rehabilitation. Additionally, TheraNow’s virtual MSK wellness platform uses computer vision technology and artificial intelligence to predict and measure musculoskeletal disorders.

In conclusion, ambient health monitoring is a rapidly growing field that has the potential to greatly improve patient outcomes and reduce healthcare costs. The use of sensors and other technologies to continuously collect data and provide proactive, personalized care is a promising development in the healthcare industry. Companies like Google, Sensi.AI, Nobi, and TheraNow are leading the way in the development and implementation of ambient health monitoring systems, and it will be exciting to see the advancements and innovations that continue to emerge in this space.

As we look towards the future, it is clear that ambient health monitoring will play a crucial role in the delivery of healthcare. With the ability to continuously collect and analyze data, these systems have the potential to detect and address health concerns before they become serious issues. If you are interested in learning more about the latest trends in digital health, please feel free to reach out to me at ashok@theranow.com or leave a comment below. And be sure to share this article with your friends and colleagues to spread the word about the exciting potential of ambient health monitoring.