GE HealthCare announced its smartphone-sized Portrait Mobile wireless monitoring solution has received FDA 510(k) clearance, clearing the path to the device becoming commercially available in the U.S.

Designed for in-hospital use, Portrait Mobile aims to shift the paradigm from periodic spot checks to continuous vital sign monitoring for indications of patient decline while freeing the patient from bed.

Portrait Mobile measures respiration rate, viewed as an indicator of patient deterioration when tracked continuously.

Continuous patient monitoring may help clinicians improve outcomes by aiding in the early detection of patient deterioration, allowing them to intervene more quickly.

For clinicians plagued with burnout, alarm fatigue and staff shortages, Portrait Mobile offers a continual picture of a patient’s vital signs. 

The GE HealthCare release notes that patient mobility, particularly post-surgery, is a key indicator for recovery that helps accelerate the recovery of functional walking capacity, which was a central reason why Portrait Mobile was designed to allow patients to move freely.

“Patients recovering from major surgery are fragile. Most patients currently have vital signs monitored every 4-6 hours," Dr. Daniel Sessler, Michael Cudahy professor and chair of outcomes research at Cleveland Clinic, said in a statement.

Sessler, who is also the principal investigator for a joint trial currently evaluating Portrait Mobile, added that continuous vital sign monitoring might help clinicians identify patients with difficulty in order to provide help quickly.

THE LARGER TREND

The evolution of Internet of Things devices and remote monitoring solutions could help transform healthcare – inside care facilities and outside hospital walls – as providers struggle with staff shortages and fatigue.

Earlier this month, Lupin Digital Health unveiled a heart failure e-clinic, which supports cardiologists with remote monitoring capability.

Use of these devices extends beyond healthcare professionals. Owlet recently received FDA clearance for its pulse oximetry sock for infants, which alerts parents when their baby's heart rate or blood oxygen saturation falls out of a prescribed range.

Tech giant Samsung and Orlando-based startup care.ai, which developed an AI-powered care-facility automation platform, have partnered to offer AI-powered patient monitoring, which allows a facility to collect real-time behavior data for clinical and operational insights through care.ai devices paired with Samsung displays.

Experts argue that easy-to-use devices will be key to equitable remote patient monitoring, as will clear communication, data reliability and choice of technology.