A few years ago Hexoskin, a Canadian startup, announced the development of a sensor-packed t-shirt that can measure a number of physiological parameters in real-time. It’s novel because it doesn’t require the wearer to put on individual sensors and attach them to the skin, allowing common daily at-home and athletic activities to be performed. We also got a chance to interview the co-founder of the company.
Now, news is out that the Hexoskin smart shirts have been successfully tested as a potential diagnostic modality for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) at the Radboud University Medical Centre in The Netherlands. The researchers wanted to evaluate whether the Hexoskin is accurate, as compared with clinical equipment, in sensing various patient breathing parameters.
They recruited 15 healthy individuals who wore the Hexoskin as well as a breathing mask and accompanying backpack. The volunteers performed a bunch of different everyday tasks, including walking, vacuuming carpet, sitting, and standing, and the results from the Hexoskin almost exactly matched the measurements provided by the breath measuring mask.
The researchers hope to soon try the smart shirts on patients with COPD, with the hope that they will one day be able to wear these at home and have their lung function be closely monitored.
Hexoskin Shirt Proving Itself for Lung Function Measurement [Medgadget]