Wearable devices in the general practitioner's office
Can we already use some smart rings, watches or other "wearables" to diagnose and treat patients in the outpatient clinic? Are these devices accurate enough? What about the legislation? And especially, how do patients perceive this topic? We also looked at these topics in our analysis, which was partially supported through the Healthy Society 2.0 Innovation Voucher.
A lecture by general practitioner Katarína Kováčová showed that wearable devices are already changing practice in primary care. A patient's smartwatch helped detect atrial fibrillation, allowing timely treatment to avert the risk of a stroke. The team then examined the market, the possibilities, and the limits of their use in Slovakia. A 59-year-old man with hypertension came to the clinic, whose watch repeatedly reported an irregular pulse. The doctors performed a 12-lead ECG and detected atrial fibrillation, the most common heart rhythm disorder and a significant cause of stroke. Timely diagnosis and treatment thus averted serious complications and confirmed that technology can be a useful "early warning". The case became an impetus to explore how to use these data systematically.Case from the clinic: from alert to diagnosis
