iCardio and eKauri, innovations that take care of Health

iCardio, preventive detection of heart disease

Presented at the recent Healthio trade show by the company specialised in telemedicine systems TeleHealth Devices and Eureca, the new iCardio system facilitates the preventive detection of heart disease, which is one of the leading causes of death worldwide, by performing an electrocardiogram. iCardio specifically allows you to perform an electrocardiogram without the need to go to a health centre or medical clinic and thus have a diagnostic report on your mobile or tablet, signed by a specialist doctor, in just ten minutes.

In Spain alone, heart failure and the circulatory system were the cause of 30 percent of deaths, with 124,197 deaths in 2015, according to the Spanish National Institute of Statistics (INE). In such a situation, the iCardio system is conceived as a portable solution for the preventive detection of heart disease that will later be treated in a specialised centre, so it can contribute decisively to reducing the mortality rate.

The system offers an immediate service, minimising the costs of the electrocardiogram and universalising its use, since a person without specific training or even patients themselves can do the test anywhere and at any time, 24 hours a day. In this way, the patient is empowered and given access to personalised medical services in scenarios such as the prevention of heart disease, remote monitoring and prediction of outbreaks.

eKauri, prevention and autonomy in the home

In the case of eKauri, it is a platform developed by Eureca that controls the different rooms in the house, so that behaviours can be detected that anticipate situations of anxiety or loss of control by the patient, to give more peace of mind to the person and his/her relatives or caregivers.

There are currently tele-assistance systems based on panic buttons, which are the most commonly used, which present problems because they require the person to voluntarily carry the device and this often does not happen, and they also require the person to consciously warn when they have a problem. On the other hand, solutions such as eKauri provide alternatives that do not require anything to be carried, as it is the sensors in the surroundings that provide the information. With this platform, the detection of problems is not reactive, but more preventive, proactive and automatic, since it is not necessary for the person to ask for help. It is a service already offered by new technologies and which will improve tele-assistance services.

An elderly person generally has quite regular habits and if they change abruptly, it normally indicates a problem. Thanks to this technology, the time that a person in the early stages of cognitive impairment can live in their home is extended. In this way, if it is established that the person goes out at certain times and in company, eKauri allows it to be ensured that it is so and otherwise raises the alarm. It can also be detected if there is a decrease in physical activity and the person tends to move to a more sedentary situation, to being in bed or sitting without moving more. It can also be checked that they do the usual activities related to hygiene and feeding or whether there is a possible fall or a daily life event beyond what should be normal and that requires emergency action or intervention to ensure that everything is going well.

Eureca will speak of both innovations and many more examples at the Meeting of Technological feasibility studies and concept tests to streamline the launch of new products, to be held on 26 May at the MediaTIC Building, aimed at companies creating their own product in any sector, but mainly focused on the health sector, that want to know how to streamline their innovation and new concept evaluation processes.

Felip Miralles

Director of the Eurecat eHealth Unit