Stick-on monitor offers cheap and precise warning system for critical conditions, say researchers
16 Dec 2024
A novel breathing monitor created by university and commercial partners is capable of providing a low cost, accurate early warning system for a range of critical conditions, claim its inventors.
They add that the PneumoratorTM, which does not require skin contact and can be wirelessly interfaced to display data onto a dedicated smartphone or tablet app, provides a potentially more efficient alternative to current manual monitoring.
The technology, developed by collaboration between Nottingham Trent and Southampton universities, University Hospital Southampton med-tech company Zelemiq, contains a series of functional layers and measures the frequency variation of the sensor caused by breathing.
This permits accurate detection of subtle variations due to chest expansion or changes in lung composition, say the scientists whose work is published in Sensors.
They outline how the device proved capable of continuously measuring respiratory rate of volunteers within an accuracy of two breaths per minute.
Dr Yang Wei, an expert in electronic textiles and electronic engineering in Nottingham Trent University’s Medical Technologies Innovation Facility.
He said: “The ability to continuously measure respiration in this way gives us the potential to enable faster, more effective treatment, significantly enhancing patient outcomes and operational efficiency within the health service.”
Changes in breathing rate can indicate patient deterioration in diseases such as sepsis and COVID-19.
Additionally, chronic respiratory diseases, including asthma, sleep apnoea, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, affect more than 435 million people globally. This has prompted interest in methods efficient, non-invasive methods that guarantee medically acceptable accuracy.
However, current practice is for nurses to measure breathing rate manually counting the number of breaths per minute. Chest-band or facemask systems can continuously measure respiration rate but can be invasive and uncomfortable when used for extended periods, say the researchers.
Professor Neil White, director of Southampton university’s Centre for Healthcare, said:
“This wearable technology allows the measurement of respiratory rate over long periods of time, which is not achievable using conventional manual breath counting. Trends in respiratory rate can therefore be recorded and observed, offering the potential for rapid interventions that can potentially save lives.”
The researchers say the device is low cost and can be manufactured at scale. It is now being validated through a clinical trial at University Hospital Southampton, in order to achieve NHS regulatory approval.
Funded by around £1million from the National Institute for Health Research, the work is based within the NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre.
Dr Harry Akerman, consultant anaesthetist at University Hospital Southampton, added: “Respiratory rate is often the first physiological parameter to change as a patient is becoming unwell - ahead of changes to heart rate, blood pressure, temperature, and oxygen levels. It is also the only one of these that is routinely measured manually and so is susceptible to human error.
“We know that earlier detection of diseases is better for patients whilst also being cheaper to treat, so a device that continuously and non-invasively measures respiratory rate could be a great tool in the early detection of deteriorating patients.”
