When most people think about wearable technology, Fitbits and Apple Watches come to mind. While these are devices have been game-changers, the world of wearable technology is so much larger - and it’s getting bigger every day.
Read MoreOver the past few years, we've covered a number of health apps that we believed put patients at risk through dubious claims about what they can measure or treat. In 2014, we detailed an app called Instant Blood Pressure, which claimed to measure blood pressure just by having users put the microphone over their chest and finger over the camera. About a year after our initial article, it was pulled first from the Google Play app store then the iTunes app store. And earlier this year, a study conducted by some of my colleagues at Johns Hopkins showed Instant Blood Pressure to be highly inaccurate and detailed how those inaccuracies could put patients at risk. Given the attention that study got in the lay press as well as Apple's moves to scale up their healthcare expertise, I assumed that the review of health apps, particularly those that claim to measure or treat something, would be tightened up.
Read MoreAlexa has started talking finance — and banks, insurance companies, and investment firms are all listening.
Read MorePharma and tech giants are pouring hundreds of millions into diabetes technology, designing gadgets and developing software aimed at helping patients manage a burdensome disease.Pharma and tech giants are pouring hundreds of millions into diabetes technology, designing gadgets and developing software aimed at helping patients manage a burdensome disease.
Read MoreSmartphone use by clinicians has risen dramatically in the last two years within hospitals, and more facilities have developed mobile device management strategies to cope.
Read MoreGoogle is expected to announce several new products today, including a new line of smartphones, an intelligent router and a voice-controlled wireless speaker. The latter, reportedly called “Google Home” is aimed to become the voice-controlled center of the future smart home and will compete directly with Amazon’s popular Echo devices.
Read MoreDo you know how many medical devices are in your hospital or group practice? Do you know where they are? Do you know if they have embedded encryption and if it is turned on? Do you know these aren’t just devices, but often are mini-computers linked to the corporate network?
Read MoreWe’re at an inflection point in the history of business. Technologies like IoT, big data and machine learning promise to reshape entire industries. According to McKinsey, IoT alone could generate up to $11.1 trillion a year in economic value by 2025. It’s important to emphasize “could” here, because I believe the potential business value of IoT is currently being overshadowed by the focus on devices alone.
Read MoreThe Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule that codifies the Medicare policy guidance when a device is not subject to the hearing aid exclusion. The rule finalizes that certain auditory implants, including cochlear implants, brain stem implants, and osseointegrated (bone-anchored) implants, do not meet the definition of hearing aids that are excluded from coverage.
Read MoreSo, you need to pick up a prescription. During lunch or after work you’ll go to the nearest pharmacy, where you’ll stand in line at a counter. The pharmacist will ask you to wait 20 minutes, so you’ll contemplate a new shampoo or flip through magazines. Maybe you’ll leave with your pills, but maybe the pharmacy won’t have your meds in stock.
Read MoreIt’s nearly impossible to count all of the fitness trackers on the market; there are ones tailored for hard-core runners, stylish designs pegged for women, even ones that alert you when you've been in the sun for too long. But there’s never quite been one developed specifically for those in manual wheelchairs before.
Read MoreLast football season, Yahoo's Darren Burton did something he'd never done before: He commissioned a fantasy football league. That may not sound like a particularly impressive feat to you, but for Burton, navigating lists of players, stats, and scores is a unique challenge, because he is blind.
Read MoreJason DaSilva said after he developed multiple sclerosis about 10 years ago, getting out got more complicated. “There were times that I was finding it impossible just to go out and meet a friend at a bar, or have a date,” he said, speaking in his apartment in Queens, New York. It was hard to figure out where his wheelchair would fit, how many stairs there were, whether there was a bathroom he could use. Sometimes even a phone call ahead couldn’t clarify all his questions.
Read MoreThe real world just got a little more push-button.
Read MoreGoogle Home makes one heck of a first impression: An adorable little Bluetooth speaker, with a hyper-advanced personal assistant that promises to do things Amazon’s Echo can’t even dream of. You can even choose the color.
Read MoreOh dear—not still clicking around with a mouse and keyboard are you? What is this, early 2015? Cortana comes baked into Windows 10 now, so you can shout out commands and control your laptop or desktop using your voice instead. Here are some of the neat ways you can make use of it.
Read MoreWearable technology has caught on to progress health and fitness. Simply worn on the body, smart garments can, for instance, track activity. Sensors in functional clothing could also help optimize exercises by monitoring movement sequences. A novel transparent sensor material developed by Fraunhofer ISC enables movement measuring sensors to be printed onto textiles. The innovative material will be presented on IDTechEX Europe at booth F16 in the Estrel Berlin on 27 and 28 April 2016.
Read MoreThe Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Information and Communications Technology Access (LiveWell RERC) is funded by a 5-year grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (grant number 90RE5028). The opinions contained in this website are those of the LiveWell RERC and do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or NIDILRR.
