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Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) physiopathologists at the
University of Pittsburgh have found wearable body monitoring (WBM) devices
useful for research, stating that for therapy study “exercise tests have gained
popularity as outcomemeasures...[acting as]surrogates of 'free-living' activity,
which...may represent the more meaningful outcome [20].” This group tested
a portable telemetric breath-by-breath (EE-BXB) metabolic device against the
BodyMedia SenseWear armband on COPD subjects concluding “A WBM is a
reproducible and valid measure of physical activity in the laboratory setting
and should, therefore, be a valid measure of 'free-living' activity and a highly
meaningful outcome measure in COPD clinical trials [20].”
Other researchers are taking advantage of free-living information gathering
capabilities for estimating energy expenditure, for example Cole et al[3].
Researchers at Virginia Tech are using BodyMedia armbands to monitor
activity levels of human participants involved in diet and exercise studies con-
cerning conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), a substance found to increase metabolic
rates and decrease fats in lab rodents.
Health Management Consultants of Virginia are developing a children's game
aimed at encouraging lifestyle changes based on activity levels - in this case foot-
steps recorded during a day. Children are given the choice to wear a SenseWear
armband that automatically retrieves to the game or a pedometer with a par-
ent controlled, daily log. Children's footsteps equal points necessary to continue
game play, which gives an advantage to the armband option because of more
frequent data updates. Preliminary feedback indicates decreased TV watching
and increased footsteps in child subjects.
6.2 Telemedicine
One of the largest commercial markets in America is that of the “aging” baby
boomer. There are projected shortages of health care professionals to tend to the
future needs of this large socioeconomic group as well as a greater emphasis on
quality of life issues. Remote medical monitoring is one answer to this growing
need. It allows fewer health care professionals to diagnose and care for more
patients at greater distances saving money, spreading the breadth of specialized
expertise and allowing for patients to have more autonomy and a perceived
higher quality of life by spending more time at home and less time in a hospital.
Along with remote medical monitoring capabilities for home health comes
health monitoring capabilities for more dire situations.
Sandia National Laboratories, of Lockheed Martin Company, has included
BodyMedia armbands in its survey of body monitoring systems with potential
to support telemedicine for both military and social health initiatives.
Researchers at the Department of Computer Science, University of Central
Florida find that a barrier to tele-health is the attenuation of information ex-
change between a health care provider and a remotely located patient. To im-
prove communication, they are developing emotional maps derived in part from
physiological data points collected by SenseWear armbands to help get “objec-
tive indicators of patients' emotional status in a useful form to enhance patient
care [14].”
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