Wearable activity tracker data can be used to obtain metrics associated with user's physical health - News-Medical.Net

A caller Johns Hopkins survey shows that information gathered from wearable enactment trackers tin beryllium utilized to get respective metrics associated with the user's wide carnal wellness and cardiovascular wellness status. While these sensors are mostly marketed arsenic regular measurement counters, the Johns Hopkins probe squad believes they could perchance service a greater purpose: supporting objective attraction for patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and different chronic diseases.

The survey was published successful npj Digital Medicine connected Nov. 9.

The intent of this survey was to amusement that clinically applicable metrics beyond regular measurement number tin beryllium derived from these wearable enactment monitors. Historically, distant monitoring of a patient's carnal presumption has been challenging. We wanted to conscionable that situation and spot what benignant of untapped accusation is contained wrong these devices that could assistance america enactment patients with PAH."

Zheng "Peter" Xu, Ph.D., study's archetypal writer and postdoctoral chap for inHealth, a strategical inaugural to beforehand precision medicine astatine The Johns Hopkins University

The Cleveland Clinic provided the Johns Hopkins probe squad with enactment tracker-obtained information for 22 individuals with PAH who wore enactment trackers betwixt 2 session visits. At some session visits, Cleveland Clinic aesculapian professionals recorded 26 wellness measurements of each participant, including health-related prime of life, bosom complaint measurements and results from the commonly utilized aerobic capableness and endurance trial known arsenic the six-minute locomotion region (6MWD) test.

Using the minute-to-minute measurement complaint and bosom complaint information of each participant, the Johns Hopkins squad ascertained respective metrics broadly associated with carnal wellness and cardiovascular function. These included the organisation of bosom complaint and strength and frequence of walking instances passim each week, arsenic good arsenic results from an analog mentation of the 6MWD trial that the squad dubbed the free-living six-minute locomotion region test. These information enabled the squad to recognize each participant's wellness presumption and to place subgroups among participants with akin metrics to 1 another.

To show that these information person imaginable for objective use, the squad besides compared the activity-tracker metrics with the 26 wellness metrics recorded during some session visits -; and recovered immoderate unexpected correlations. For example, an enactment tracker-measured fittingness appraisal (based connected measurement number and bosom complaint data) correlated with levels of clinically measured NT-proBNP, a humor biomarker utilized to measure hazard of bosom failure. Across the 22 participants, the probe squad recovered statistically important differences successful 18 of these metrics.

Finding truthful galore statistically important differences successful a comparatively tiny cohort suggests to america that activity-tracker information whitethorn marque it imaginable to place surrogate markers of illness severity that tin beryllium monitored remotely. These information could perchance lend to the recognition of patients who would payment from much predominant session visits oregon circumstantial medications."

Peter Searson, Ph.D., elder writer of the survey and the Joseph R. and Lynn C. Reynolds Professor astatine the Johns Hopkins University Whiting School of Engineering

"We besides judge that enactment tracker-measured wellness parameters could service arsenic proxies for clinically measured wellness parameters of patients with chronic disease," adds Searson.

Next, the probe squad is exploring whether these devices could enactment objective attraction for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary illness (COPD) and scleroderma. Collaborating with the Johns Hopkins COPD Precision Medicine Center of Excellence, they volition question to find whether signals derived from enactment trackers tin beryllium utilized to foretell the hazard of a COPD flareup.