From: [log in to unmask] [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf
Of Jewl
Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2010 1:12 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [epilepsy] Seizure Detecting Wristwatch?
A wristwatch-style device may soon help allay a major fear among people with
epilepsy: That a seizure could occur without the knowledge of someone who
could help. "We are working on a device called the SmartWatch that will
detect myoclonic and grand mal seizures within 4-5 seconds after onset and
alert caregivers within 7-10 seconds after onset," said Stanford University
pediatric neurology professor Donald Olson, M.D.
With San Jose, California-based Smart Monitor, an entrepreneurial offshoot
of video security company Intellivision, Olson-who directs the Clinical
Neurophysiology Laboratory at Stanford's Lucile Packard Children's
Hospital-has completed a fully-functional prototype ready for Food and Drug
Administration approval.
SmartWatch detects "certain kinds of abnormal movement, then signals a smart
phone, cell phone, e-mail, laptop or other device," Olson explained. "It can
notify a caregiver within seconds that a seizure has occurred."
The device should allow caregivers and family members both rest and respite,
knowing that even in bed at night, the SmartWatch will alert them to seizure
activity, he said.
The partners received grant support from the Epilepsy Foundation and the
Epilepsy Therapy Project which helped them complete a clinical trial; add
Bluetooth, a wireless technology for exchanging information over short
distances; and make improvements to software that interprets motion signals.
During the trial, "SmartWatch missed only one out of eight convulsive
seizures," among patients admitted to the Stanford Medical Center for
seizure monitoring, Olson said. A small malfunction, since fixed, caused the
single miss.
Sight to sensation
Until SmartWatch, Intellivision specialized in video security monitoring.
But an unusual request from the mother of a teenager with epilepsy sent Anoo
Nathan and her company on a new course.
"She asked us if we could somehow monitor her son during the night when he
was asleep," Nathan explained. "But it turned out to be an insurmountable
challenge for video. It's hard to keep track of a person's movement in the
dark, underneath blankets or sheets. For video to work, the subject has to
be in the camera's full field of view."
But that didn't dissuade Nathan and husband Vaidhi- Intellivision's
president and CEO-from pursuing the idea. In 2007, they filed a patent
application for a device that detects abnormal motion, but not with a
camera. Instead, tiny gyroscopes, accelerometers and computer algorithms
sense and analyze bodily motion directly.
"The SmartWatch is primarily worn on the wrist like a watch, but can be worn
on the arm, leg or ankle of patients whose abnormal movements are more
pronounced there," Nathan explained. "It's fully portable and can be worn in
and out of bed, during sleep or waking hours. It continuously monitors
movements, analyzes them for abnormality and issues alerts."
To make the device "cool" and socially acceptable, Nathan envisions
streamlined versions born of 21st century product design. "The SmartWatch
will evolve," she said. "We envision several versions."
Prediction vs. detection
With a built-in memory that can record the time and duration of a clonic or
tonic-clonic seizure, the SmartWatch promises not only more independence,
but more information, Olson explained.
"It can produce a complete archived record of all seizure activity-when and
how often seizures occur, and how long they last," Olson said. "We encourage
patients and their families to keep track of seizure severity and duration,
mostly for medication purposes. The SmartWatch will do this automatically,
and with more precision."
That promise is one of many reasons Olson found the concept attractive.
Neurologists and epileptologists are often skeptical about interventional
devices, particularly those that promise seizure relief or seizure
prediction.
"Seizure prediction is the holy grail of epilepsy research," Olson said.
"But it's still a long way off. SmartWatch isn't about prediction-it's about
detection."
But motion detection isn't infallible, cautions epileptologist Rama Maganti,
M.D., who directs the Barrow Neurological Institute electro-neurodiagnostics
department at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix.
Likening the motion-detecting SmartWatch technology to actigraphy-a
non-invasive way to monitor human waking/sleeping cycles with a
wristwatch-style actimetry sensor-Maganti said that, as with any motion
detector, "there will be a lot of false positives."
High tech health
Spinning off a health technology like SmartWatch from a high technology
company like Intellivision involves major new challenges, Nathan explained.
"The similarities between the two companies start-and end-with technology.
Nothing else is at all the same."
Health care devices face regulatory hurdles, intensive capital demands and
long product timelines, unlike pure tech products such as a PC or an iPhone.
"Six months to one year might be a normal product development cycle in
tech," Nathan said. "But some medical devices take 10 years."
To move more nimbly through the system, Nathan envisions launching
SmartWatch in two phases, first as a simple abnormal motion detector,
"without any claims involving epilepsy, seizures, or its efficacy as a
medical device."
A second, medical device phase will launch after Nathan and Olson test the
device on at least 35 epilepsy patients. A European launch and the quest for
insurance reimbursement approval are also in the works.
"We have a product that provides a compelling case for neurologists,
physicians, caregivers and most of all, people with epilepsy," Nathan
explained.
__._,_.___
Reply
<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
to sender | Reply
<mailto:[log in to unmask]
0> to group | Reply
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/epilepsy/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJucWI0bmRlBF9TAzk3Mz
U5NzE0BGdycElkAzg4MTkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA1MDYxNjc3BG1zZ0lkAzYwNzk4BHNlYwNmdHIEc2
xrA3JwbHkEc3RpbWUDMTI4Mzk2NTkxNg--?act=reply&messageNum=60798> via web post
|
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/epilepsy/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJiOXQzbmc5BF9TAzk3Mz
U5NzE0BGdycElkAzg4MTkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA1MDYxNjc3BHNlYwNmdHIEc2xrA250cGMEc3RpbW
UDMTI4Mzk2NTkxNg--> Start a New Topic
Messages
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/epilepsy/message/60798;_ylc=X3oDMTMzaGNkcjQ3B
F9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzg4MTkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA1MDYxNjc3BG1zZ0lkAzYwNzk4BHNlY
wNmdHIEc2xrA3Z0cGMEc3RpbWUDMTI4Mzk2NTkxNgR0cGNJZAM2MDc5OA--> in this topic
(1)
Recent Activity:
.
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/epilepsy/members;_ylc=X3oDMTJjZGlsc210BF9TAzk
3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzg4MTkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA1MDYxNjc3BHNlYwN2dGwEc2xrA3ZtYnJzBHN
0aW1lAzEyODM5NjU5MTY-?o=6> New Members 2
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/epilepsy;_ylc=X3oDMTJiYzE3cW1mBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE
0BGdycElkAzg4MTkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA1MDYxNjc3BHNlYwN2dGwEc2xrA3ZnaHAEc3RpbWUDMTI
4Mzk2NTkxNg--> Visit Your Group
Just a friendly reminder: Please remember to sign your post and remember to
clean up messages when you reply to them. This is especially important if
you are on digest. This not only helps out the list owner but, it makes
messages much easier to read when they arrive in our inboxes.
MARKETPLACE
Stay
<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=15rflt2k5/M=493064.13983314.14041046.13298430/D
=grphealth/S=1705061677:MKP1/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1283973116/L=2f064464-bb6c-11df-952
6-ab3ce068f551/B=6XupMWKJiSw-/J=1283965916419887/K=eJ1mZSsQUJnrlFSwSZhepA/A=
6060255/R=0/SIG=1194m4keh/*http:/us.toolbar.yahoo.com/?.cpdl=grpj> on top
of your group activity without leaving the page you're on - Get the Yahoo!
Toolbar now.
_____
Get
<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=15r7u1euh/M=493064.13814537.14041040.10835568/D
=grphealth/S=1705061677:MKP1/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1283973116/L=2f064464-bb6c-11df-952
6-ab3ce068f551/B=6nupMWKJiSw-/J=1283965916419887/K=eJ1mZSsQUJnrlFSwSZhepA/A=
6078812/R=0/SIG=114ae4ln1/*http:/dogandcatanswers.yahoo.com/> great advice
about dogs and cats. Visit the Dog & Cat Answers Center.
_____
Hobbies
<http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=15rn77s3b/M=493064.14012770.13963757.13298430/D
=grphealth/S=1705061677:MKP1/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1283973116/L=2f064464-bb6c-11df-952
6-ab3ce068f551/B=63upMWKJiSw-/J=1283965916419887/K=eJ1mZSsQUJnrlFSwSZhepA/A=
6015306/R=0/SIG=11vlkvigg/*http:/advision.webevents.yahoo.com/hobbiesandacti
vitieszone/> & Activities Zone: Find others who share your passions!
Explore new interests.
<http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJhdTA1aTEwBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzg4M
TkEZ3Jwc3BJZAMxNzA1MDYxNjc3BHNlYwNmdHIEc2xrA2dmcARzdGltZQMxMjgzOTY1OTE2>
Yahoo! Groups
Switch to:
<mailto:[log in to unmask]
mat:%20Traditional> Text-Only,
<mailto:[log in to unmask]:%20Digest>
Daily Digest .
<mailto:[log in to unmask]>
Unsubscribe . <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> Terms of Use
.
<http://geo.yahoo.com/serv?s=97359714/grpId=8819/grpspId=1705061677/msgId=60
798/stime=1283965916/nc1=5191953/nc2=5741391/nc3=5733764>
__,_._,___
__________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature
database 5435 (20100908) __________
The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus.
http://www.eset.com
-----------------------
To change your mail settings or leave the C-PALSY list, go here:
http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?SUBED1=c-palsy
|
