Amrita University, a private university in India, has launched a wearable health monitoring device for home use. 

WHAT IT DOES

Developed by Amrita's Centre for Wireless Networks and Applications, Amrita Spandanam is a wearable device that uses a finger clip to measure six body parameters: blood glucose, blood pressure, heart rate, blood oxygen, respiratory rate, and 6-lead ECG. According to a press statement, it is built with patented AI algorithms that process differential light signals to provide vital body measurements in "less than a minute". 

The smartphone-connected device delivers results via cloud, allowing doctors to remotely access patients' parameters. Moreover, the wearable device integrates multiple learning models to predict the potential deterioration of a user's health. 

Dr Maneesha V Ramesh, who heads the research team behind the device, shared that the technology has been tested on about 1,000 patients at Amrita Hospital in Kochi and other remote clinics in the state of Kerala. It was deployed at Amrita Hospital last year to enable remote monitoring of patients with severe COVID-19. 

Weeks ago, Amrita signed a partnership with local startup Tranquility IoT & Big Data Solutions for the manufacture and sale of its wearable device. 

WHY IT MATTERS

Amrita touts several uses for its wearable device. For one, Amrita Spandanam offers a "non-invasive, prick-free" way for around 77 million Indian patients with diabetes to regularly monitor their blood glucose levels.

The device, the university claims, also serves as an alternative for bedside monitors. According to Dr Ramesh, it can aid patients in rural and remote areas to self-monitor their vital parameters without the assistance of a health professional. "The data can be sent to any doctor remotely over the internet and teleconsultation [can be] initiated within the app itself, enabling the patient to obtain remote prescriptions and guidance," she added. 

Additionally, Amrita said their device can also be used as a decision support tool that provides early warning for acute hypotensive episodes, sepsis, sleep apnea, and atrial fibrillation. 

MARKET SNAPSHOT

The latest in health monitoring technology is a contactless vital signs monitoring tool developed by Israeli firm Binah.ai. Applied on smartphones, tablets, and laptops, the video-based AI technology measures not only a user's blood pressure but also heart rate, heart-rate variability, oxygen saturation, respiration rate, sympathetic stress, parasympathetic activity and pulse respiration.

Meanwhile, in the wearable technology space, Samsung has progressively introduced blood pressure measurement and ECG monitoring capabilities to its consumer smartwatches globally last year. Peloton has recently launched an armband that serves as a Bluetooth heart rate monitor. The device uses optical sensors to detect heart rate and has five LED lights that display heart rate zone, Bluetooth connectivity status and battery charge.