SUSU scientists have created a bracelet that can warn of an impending attack, strengthen nerves and determine that a person is sick even before the first symptoms appear.
Scientists from South Ural State University have created a modernized smart bracelet for monitoring the general state of human health, including the reactions of the nervous system. The device for monitoring vital indicators visually resembles the famous smart watch, but is a full-fledged high-precision medical device. The neurotracker monitors a whole range of neurophysiological indicators, including motor activity, body temperature, pulse, respiratory rate, ECG, heart rate variability, blood oxygenation, changes in blood sugar levels, and measures electrodermal activity.
"Our bracelet measures the reactions of the nervous system − this is the most important difference from all existing bracelets. For example, an Apple Watch that costs 50 thousand roubles does not monitor the state of the nervous system, but our device allows you to assess your emotional state: whether you are aggressive or overtired, overexcited, and so on," explains Iurii Koriukalov, Senior Research Fellow at the SUSU Research and Innovation Services. "This allows us to conduct research in children with neurological disorders: epilepsy, hyperactivity syndrome, and autism."
The neurotracker, the main task of which is to help avoid crisis states, will be useful to athletes, elderly people and anyone suffering from cardiovascular diseases, pathologies of the nervous system and diabetes.
In particular, the smart gadget will be useful for people with epilepsy. The device is capable of predicting the approach of the next convulsive seizure based on the jump in nervous excitation. Thus, an aura (a precursor symptom), appearing from 50 to 40 seconds before the crisis, will be clearly captured by the bracelet, which will instantly send a vibration signal to the person. Thanks to this, it is possible to prevent the patient from falling sharply, and in this way he will be able to take a safe position in time and ask people around him for help.
The medical bracelet is also applicable for outpatient monitoring. Indicators are monitored, for example, for infected patients undergoing treatment. The attending physician can remotely (using a special application) monitor the condition of the patient’s body in real time (being even on another continent), evaluate the effectiveness of the prescribed treatment and, if necessary, adjust it, prevent deterioration in the condition, and give the patient important advice. The application is like a computer, in which the actual data received from the bracelet is processed.
Speaking about the ordinary brand watches and bracelets, the user receives data already corrected by the system, which is why it becomes biased. The neurotracker is aimed at transmitting raw information since its correct analysis is carried out by a special interface, taking into account all important parameters.
It is worth mentioning that with the help of all the indicators monitored by the neurotracker, a doctor can see when a person has truly recovered. Often, based on imaginary sensations, the patient considers himself to be completely healthy, while the monitoring of neurophysiological indicators demonstrates that not all of them have returned to normal. This way it can be established that the body is still recovering, and the patient needs to continue treatment.
Another innovative function of the smart bracelet is that it can also provide a therapeutic effect. Thanks to the built-in electrodes, it is possible to control the psycho-emotional state of a person. Microcurrents delicately relax the nervous system through the skin and contribute to the strengthening and development of nervous tissue, and the creation of new connections between nerve cells.
"Such neurostimulation allows not only to relax the nervous system, but also to turn on certain regulatory mechanisms through the thalamus. It is known that if you influence the nervous system from the outside or simply the skin with a certain rhythm, you can influence certain areas of the brain," says Professor Tatiana Popova, Research Fellow at the SUSU Research and Innovation Services. "These sections operate at certain frequencies, amplitudes, and so on. If we generate a neuroimpulse similar to a specific brain area, then we activate these connections, for example, thalamocortical ones, which trigger a certain correction of the state. The relaxation mode is absolutely controllable: a person can turn it on at any time when it becomes necessary."
The multifunctional bracelet is equipped with European quality sensors that are used in medical devices. However, externally the medical device does not reveal itself at all. It looks like an ordinary touch watch, which every third person wears today. So no one will guess that this stylish accessory actually keeps your psychophysical indicators under control. In addition, familiar functions will be available on the gadget: messages, calls, current time, SOS button. As a medical device, the neurotracker has no health or age restrictions (with the exception of children under 3 years of age).
It is noteworthy that during the Covid-19 pandemic there were only two companies in the world that could detect people infected with Covid a day before symptoms − these include the invention by Iurii Koriukalov (in terms of electrodermal activity) and an American similar device (in terms of heart rate). It is important that electrodermal activity is a fairly accurate measure of the reactions of the nervous system and changes in the blood of the patient. Changes in the blood are characterized by certain vibrations that are detected by a compact system on the wrist. Depending on the nature of the fluctuations, viral or bacterial infection can be tentatively identified. According to the scientist, there is a great future for monitoring electrodermal activity since this indicator is distinguished by its reliability, and therefore formed the basis of a new multifunctional bracelet.