Noninvasive Continuous Monitoring of Vital Signs With Wearables: Fit for Medical Use?

TLDR

Wearables enable continuous, noninvasive monitoring of vital signs and have become mobile, cost‑effective tools for digital biomarkers, with wrist sensors most commonly used. The study assessed whether wearables are ready for medical use by conducting a PubMed literature review of 2008–2018 publications. The authors performed a PubMed search yielding 314 hits, of which 79 were clinical‑trial studies (16 randomized controlled trials), and analyzed the use of motion sensors for measuring movements and activity. Only about 20 % of the studies employed cardiovascular sensors, the wrist was the preferred location in 22.8 % of cases, and wearables can be applied in specific medical contexts when complex influencing factors are considered.

Abstract

Wearables (= wearable computer) enable continuous and noninvasive monitoring of a range of vital signs. Mobile and cost-effective devices, combined with powerful data analysis tools, open new dimensions in assessing body functions ("digital biomarkers").To answer the question whether wearables are ready for use in the medical context, a PubMed literature search and analysis for their clinical-scientific use using publications from the years 2008 to 2018 was performed.A total of 79 out of 314 search hits were publications on clinical trials with wearables, of which 16 were randomized controlled trials. Motion sensors were most frequently used to measure defined movements, movement disorders, or general physical activity. Approximately 20% of the studies used sensors to detect cardiovascular parameters. As for the sensor location, the wrist was chosen in most studies (22.8%).Wearables can be used in a precisely defined medical context, when taking into account complex influencing factors.