FEATURE Medical
Wearable technology trends in healthcare
Jan-Hein Broeders, Healthcare Business Development Manager for Europe at Analog Devices, discusses medical market trends and how recent technology developments continue to benefit our health and improve our lives
T
he medical market can be divided into several subsegments: medical imaging, medical instrumentation and vital sign monitoring (VSM), which over the last couple of years has shown the fastest growth. Ten years ago, VSM systems were mainly found in hospitals, ambulances and medical helicopters. These high-end systems support ECG measurements, oxygen saturation, body temperature and CO2
, among many other vital signs.
However, VSM is now becoming part of daily wearables, allowing physicians to remotely monitor their patients. This removes the strain on the health services, since patients can recover in the comfort of their homes. Remote VSM systems will enable the elderly to live independently, which mitigates yet another strain on the public services.
monitoring), motion tracking and accurate body temperature. All these subsystems have integrated analogue to digital converters (ADCs), for easy measurements of parameters and include the readings in the fi nal application, without building a circuit with discrete components.
Optical sensors make it possible to
measure heart rate at a single spot on the body, but also measure heart rate variability (a measure for stress level detection) or oxygen saturation (the percentage of red blood cells carrying oxygen). Since not every electronics engineer works with optical parameters, ADI off ers optical modules that combine the AFE, one or more photodiodes and the LEDs.
34 December/January 2022 | Automation
ADI’s medical solutions Analog Devices (ADI) off ers complete analogue front ends (AFEs) for VSM systems – from the analogue input stage, to the digital interface, including self- calibration and temperature compensation, but also the sensor element where possible. ADI’s single-chip solutions now measure biopotential, bioimpedance, optical PPG (for heart rate, heart rate variability and SpO2
New introductions ADI recently launched a biomedical AFE called ADPD4000. A wearable device often measures more than just one parameter, but to avoid increase in overall board size, power consumption and system cost, vital parameters – with the exception of motion – are now measured with just one chip, the ADPD4000. It directly connects to biopotential electrodes to measure cardiac signals and galvanic skin response to stress. It has eight inputs to measure photocurrents, and eight current sources to drive LEDs. The chip also supports auxiliary inputs to measure capacitance and temperature. ADPD4000 enables designers to create a wearable VSM system that’s small, very power-effi cient and cost- eff ective.
Monitoring health Technology has had a big impact on the overall healthcare market. With wearable devices, health changes and anomalies can be detected at a much earlier stage than before, leading to identifying diseases sooner and getting treatments quicker. One obvious example is hypertension, or high blood pressure, which in some cases can go undetected. Over a longer period, it can result in either stroke, heart failure, arterial fi brillation, or another disease. Hypertension is normally treated
by lifestyle changes or medication, so wearable devices can help reduce that risk of health complications just by off ering convenient daily monitoring.
Another example is diabetes. Normally, diabetics must monitor their glucose levels several times per day and rely on taking insulin to regulate their glucose levels – what many describe as an inconvenient and burdensome daily disruption. There is a new trend, moving from blood glucose monitoring (BGM) to continuous glucose monitoring (CGM), made possible by wearable sensing technology. CGM continuously measures the glucose levels, and an insulin pump injects the required insulin to manage those levels. Since this is a closed-loop approach, the burden is lifted from the patient. The device will also provide freedom from that disruption that those suff ering from diabetes deal with. Technology – and especially wearable devices – is proving to have invaluable benefi ts to healthcare, both in terms of preventative measures or for those that are already diagnosed with a well-known disease.
CONTACT:
Analog Devices
www.analog.com
automationmagazine.co.uk
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