News
STDs, HIV & a lack of privacy
With the global focus on personal privacy after the revelation of the PRISM program, an unlikely source of a potential security hazard and it could be in your pocket. Smartphones and apps have become ubiquitous in the modern world with far reaching applications, including apps designed to aid the care and prevention of HIV & other STDs. A letter to the editor in the Journal of Medical Internet Research has highlighted that while apps can offer many benefits, each individual risks exposing a wide range of private information to the...
read moreWill Apple’s Touch ID Fingerprint Recognition Revolutionise mHealth Security?
With the announcement of Apple’s iPhone 5S, the new “Touch ID” fingerprint scanner represents an evolution in mHealth security. As previously discussed in our Editorial over a year ago, one of the growing concerns around the use of mHealth are security issues. Given the lack of clear guidelines, and poor support from hospitals, many clinicians have patient related information on their personal smartphones. These can vary from clinical photos taken for documentation and communication with other clinical staff, to emails...
read moreMisfit Personal Activity Tracker
There are currently many personal activity trackers on the market, including the Nike Fuelband, Jawbone Up and our recently covered, Withings Pulse. Another new entrant to this market is the Misfit Shine. Misfit Wearables is a new company, which unlike the other companies, has only one product available – the Shine. There are also many differences with the Misfit Shine. It was funded on the crowdfunding site Indiegogo in January, and it has an interesting mechanism of attaching on to clothing. One has to attach a band or clasp to the...
read moreAugmented Reality Surgery using iPads
Tablet computers are being used more in clinical medicine, and surgery is no exception. A recent article by a Reuters journalist documents the experimental use of an iPad with augmented reality during a liver tumour resection surgery. Augmented reality is the use of a device’s camera and other sensors to visualise supplemented information, in this case the blood supply of the liver. Augmented reality has already been widely used in other fields including interior design, navigation and tourism. In this surgery, information about the...
read morePEEK Smartphone App for Portable Eye Exams
One aspect of mobile health that cuts costs and also increases availability of medical tools is using smartphone apps. PEEK, or Portable Eye Examination Kit, is a smartphone app in development to try and make available high quality tools available conveniently in developing countries. It consists of a smartphone app that utilises the camera, LED flash and display to test multiple aspects of the eye exam including visual acuity, visual field, colour vision and many others. While currently not available for download, there is currently a large...
read moreVolume 2 Issue 2
The Editorial Board at the Journal of Mobile Technology in Medicine is proud to present Volume 2, Issue 2, published in July 2013. Mobile technology in Medicine is a rapidly developing area, and we hope to continue accelerating research in the field. We look forward to your submissions for Issue 3. Editorial 001 Unusual Utilisation of Mobile Technology in Medicine R. Halim Original Article 003 Epilepsy at a Glance: A Mobile Medical Record M. Reider-Demer Case Report 008 Virtual Avatars, Gaming, and Social Media: Designing a Mobile...
read more$36 Billion Dollars in Savings from Remote Patient Monitoring
Juniper Research has recently produced a report showing that remote patient monitoring will save up to 36 billion dollars (USD) globally by 2018. While this is a best case scenario, it is not an unrealistic one as devices, software and usage are just starting to be developed. mHealth, a term that refers to the concept of using mobile devices and software to remotely practice medicine is seen as a new frontier in cutting healthcare costs around the world and to keep patients out of the hospital. This is particularly relevant for chronic...
read moreWithings Pulse activity tracker launched
Wearable electronics have become very popular, and Withings new Pulse smart activity tracker hopes to capitalise on this trend. The Withings Pulse is a very small instrument containing a heart rate monitor and pedometer to track the steps taken, distance covered, elevation, calories burned and quality of sleep of the user. It is also possible to connect to the free Withings Health Mate app via Bluetooth to display a trend and real time information of the user. The Withings Health Mate app is available on both iOS and Android. The Withings...
read moremHealth causes a digital diaper change
Pixie Scientific has recently launched an Indiegogo crowd-funded project into developing and marketing ‘smart diapers’ for children. These new nappies feature a square grid and a QR code that allows it to be scanned by a mobile app. This app then decodes the coloured squares and QR code into information regarding the child’s hydration, signs of urinary tract infections and state of their kidney function. The company hopes that the crowd sourced funding will enable it to kick start manufacturing and also to start the initial...
read moreMaking Diabetes management Abriiz
Using the very latest in mobile technology and behavioural psychology, medical solutions provider, Ideomed, has expanded their lineup of innovative tools for the effective management of chronic illnesses to include new options to improve compliance for patients with diabetes. The Abriiz Diabetes Management Platform aims to improve the compliance to treatment of the 25.8 million sufferers of the disease in the US alone, who currently report a full compliance rate of only 55%. The software platform hopes to use customised reminders, social...
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