When a heart attack occurs, seconds count and prompt attention is often the difference between life and death. Yet, while medical science has made significant advances in treating cardiac arrest—defibrillators are now available in many public buildings and doctors have emergency room anti-arrhythmic drugs available—little has been done to detect the onset of an actual attack.
Researchers at the Cleveland Clinic hope to change the situation. Led by John Rickard, MD, they've developed a watch-size monitor aptly dubbed the Wriskwatch. The device, which correctly signaled artificially induced pulselessness in trials, offers a non-invasive way to detect sudden cardiac arrest. The device displayed a false-positive (false alarm) rate of about 10 percent, Dr. Rickard says.
The Wriskwatch incorporates a piezoelectric disk strapped snugly against the wrist. As a result, it's able to detect arterial swelling at the radial pulse point and identify pulselessness or ventricular fibrillation. The device uses a wireless Bluetooth connection to contact emergency response personnel or caretakers in an old age home or assisted care facility, he says. A built in motion sensor blocks the alert unless the wrist is still.
In the early-stage trial—which was reported in the online journal HeartRhythm—34 patients participated in the study and the device worked effectively on all but five. The patients wore the watch for 20-minute intervals and the research team artificially induced pulselessness by inflating a blood pressure cuff under the device. The failures were related to inadequate signals on two subjects, an inability for two others to remain still and one other had the device fall off. The sensitivity of the watch to detect pulse status (based on 15 second intervals) was 99.9 percent.
Researchers are now working on a more advanced system that will activate an alert only when the wearer is unconscious. This is designed to reduce the number of false alarms. A company, Emergency Medical Technologies, is developing the Wristwatch commercially and hopes to introduce it within the next few years.
Notes Rickard: "The Wriskwatch is a novel device that shows promise as a tool to hasten activation of emergency medical systems and facilitate early defibrillation in patients with cardiac arrest."
CONNECT THE DOTS
For an abstract of the Cleveland Clinic study on the Wristwatch, click to HeartRhythm. For a discussion about another heart attack detection system with implantable sensors, visit MITnews online.
Samuel Greengard 03 Dec, 2011--
Source: http://www.healthymagination.com/blog/an-early-warning-system-for-cardiac-arrest/
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