24/7 Continuous Blood Pressure monitoring is anybody interested?

Hey,

I’m kinda new to the forum and the quantified self movement but find it fascinating. This forum is a wealth of information. I have just started working with this start up which has developed a cuffless blood pressure monitor.

Now we have the sensor working we are trying to figure out how to make it useful. Would anybody be interested in a 24/7 continuous blood pressure monitors? Our current thinking is a discreet comfortable upper arm cuff which syncs with your smart phone to graph your data over time, but we are open minded.

I’d love to hear your opinion/thoughts regardless of whether they are positive / negative / indifferent.

Thanks
Danny

6 Likes

Hey Danny,

It’s definitely always nice to have another tool in your arsenal.

I have a couple of quick questions:
How frequently would it be able to measure your blood pressure?
What sort of accuracy could you expect while moving and doing other daily activities vs the normal procedure of having to remain very still and calm?

Thanks!

Assuming the device provides accurate data, I think many QSers would be interested in using such a device to conduct short-term experiments/monitoring, but getting a generally healthy person to wear a dedicated BP device 24/7 long term might be a hard sell.

I currently use a Withings blood pressure monitor for periodic BP measurements, but there are a number of single-reading devices coming to market that provide quick readings (by touching to the forehead, etc.) such as the Scanadu Scout (which I’ve had the chance to try out).

Another requirement is access to the data (either via an API or simple data export). Good luck!

I would be very interest and could help you test and validate.
Marc Mathys
Department of Medical Psychology
Philipps-University of Marburg
Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 4
35032 Marburg
Germany
Phone: +49.6421.2866250
FAX: ++49.6421.2864881
US Phone (805) 760-1356
Skype mamathys

I’d love to get continuous blood pressure readings over a period of a month or so to establish a baseline, and then again for shorter periods of time every few months.

Like @QuantifiedBob, I’d also have to be able to trust the measurements, and be able to export the data (which is why I never signed with Scanadu, though I might reconsider in future).

Hey,

Thanks for your interest.

How frequently would it be able to measure your blood pressure?
We are currently debating this so would like to know your thoughts, the main trade off is battery life. Our thoughts are currently every 15/30mins. Would this be enough resolution for you?

What sort of accuracy could you expect while moving and doing other daily activities vs the normal procedure of having to remain very still and calm?
Our aim is to be FDA approved so just as accurate as conventional monitors in the market. Moving around makes this harder, but we are working on filtering out enough of the noise to give a sensible reading.

1 Like

basisbreakdown +1 on “It’s definitely always nice to have another tool in your arsenal.”

As a “healthy hobbyist” on QS sleep data, it would all boil down to price.
Your FDA cert goal makes me assume your product will be out of my price
range.

Is the battery (or pack) easily removable to swap in a recharged pack of generic batteries?
Assuming a user can get used to the noise/pressure sensations during sleep, how many hours of use are you targeting per charge?

I will be watching your progress out of curiosity though.

Hey Nanodot,

The product is using near field radar so the person wouldn’t feel any noise/pressure. We are working hard at the moment to figure out the final form factor - apologies for the delay in getting back to you. This will ultimately set battery life. Would a day be practically useful for you?

We are currently looking to start engaging potential customers - would you or other people on the forum be interested enough to maybe have a quick Skype call with us?

Thanks
Danny

2 Likes

Hi Danny,

I’m interested. A more elderly member of my family has over the past year been hospitalised multiple times due to extremely high blood pressure. These are sporadic but life threatening events. I’ve been looking for a continuous monitoring system for sometime now, because of the obvious value of not only having historical data to identify triggers / gap areas where medication isn’t sufficiently managing the condition but to have real-time feedback/alerts to take action (prompt to take a rest or go to the ER).

Right now, the member in question is just monitoring blood pressure manually, and using the polar H7 for heart-rate monitoring. We haven’t found a good solution for continuous (24hr) monitoring for the latter, particularly, how to keep strap moist to maintain long-term contact.

1 Like

I know of 3 devices - Finapres, Somnomedics, and Caretaker - All expensive. If you know of something else or want to develop something, please let me know.

1 Like

Hi Danny, haven’t heard anything since February about this, but I know there is still strong interest. Any updates?

Hi Ruxi,
Have you tried electrode gel on the polar H7 strap to improve conductivity? I used the Spectra 360 electrode gel for overnight heart rate measurement and found it significantly reduced the missed heart beats. I also used a compression shirt to maintain contact.

I saw this new product on Indiegogo - looks interesting in that it’s a wristwatch but has an inflatable cuff under the band. I don’t know much more about it but thought I’d share…

Those watches compare ecg to blood pulse arrivals. If, like most watches they don’t measure blood pulse very well… and most on amazon require user to manually hold the watch. Still tech is something to look forward to.


I have the abpm50 from contec medical systems and a few attempts do not seem to show much useful data. It does interrupt me at specific intervals. Blue is HR. This is over month.


It was difficult to follow all the instructions.
Notes from https://www.cdc.gov/bloodpressure/measure.htm and others. Wrist and finger monitors are not recommended because they yield less reliable readings. Choose a monitor that has been validated Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation, the British Hypertension Society and the International Protocol for the Validation of Automated BP Measuring Devices.
Calibrate device against doctor’s model.
(ignoring)Measure at the same time every day.
“Factors that can affect blood pressure include: stress, smoking, exercise, cold temperatures, a full stomach, a full bladder, caffeine, sleep, and some medications.”
Relax five minutes before. No clothes between you and cuff.
Center cuff on Heart level, just above nipples.
Make sure the bottom of the cuff is placed directly above the bend of the elbow.
Sit straight in dinner chair with back feet arm supported and flat. Legs uncrossed.
Relax. No talking or movement. Breathe and don’t take deep breaths.
3 measurements 2 min apart.


“If you can wiggle the two fingertips under the top edge but cannot wedge your full fingers beneath the cuff, the cuff is tight enough. If you can wedge your full fingers under the cuff then you need to open up the cuff and pull it tighter before closing it again.”
1 Like

Some of the how toos recommend tightening the cuff until I cant fit the entirety of two fingers under it. How do I do that without help?

This is quite an interesting development that will be useful in hospitals. And just to control the pressure when it is very unstable and you need to control it often. I have a regular blood pressure monitor so far. But your option is modern and handy enough even to replace my old device.

If anyone is still interested in this topic I have a Contec ABPM50 (cost £113 from China, including carriage), and it works very well. Ambulatory BP and HR readings as frequently as every 15’. Exports to Windows software that can produce all sorts of reports. Worth noting:

  • the manual is horrendous, working out how to use it without other information is a big job
  • the cuff supplied is designed for another person to fit it to the patient, and difficult to fit to yourself. I use a cuff with an easy-to-fit metal D-ring, as supplied with use-it-yourself BPMs (you can buy cuffs, I used one from another BPM)
  • the software version recommended (for Windows only) doesn’t print reliably. I was able to find a later version that works. To create a PDF file, don’t use the PDF option - it uses particular PDF software - but install a “print to PDF” driver and print to that (I use an old version of Foxit PDF 9 that has such a driver).
  • the software has the capability to output a CSV file, but it’s not easy to find
  • I have analysed the raw data file and can extract from it, but haven’t found it particularly useful to do so, the available reports are fine for me. And the BP readings are available in the CSV file the ABPM50 software exports.
  • I don’t know if a calibration service is available; and it might be cheaper to buy a new meter every few years! It seems accurate enough compared with reading from another BPM.t in a Windows virtual machine. This is probably unnecessary.

HTH

Any thoughts on Akttia? Has anybody used it that has some good/bad reviews?

I’ve used the Aktiia for the past year and I will happily vouch for them. It’s one of my favorite wearables.

What I love:

  • Readings seem reasonably accurate and correlate with my behavior throughout the day. There are several studies showing the accuracy of the readings when sitting/lying/standing and it’s accurate enough for my purposes.
  • Battery life is great. I charge it when I shower and that’s enough to keep it fully charged at all times.
  • App is simple to use and device is easy to calibrate & sync regularly.

What I don’t love as much:

  • There’s no easily accessible API that I’m aware of. I resort to exporting my results as a PDF and then parsing the PDF to retrieve my blood pressure readings.
  • The device is UK-based and I don’t live in the UK so I have to resort to side-loading the app. I wish they allowed worldwide access in the Play Store/App Store.
1 Like

Actually Swiss based. Unfortunately to get the accuracy, the does some averaging. I would really like a beat-to-beat device, eve if the accuracy was a bit less, because the relative values are what is important and the interpersonal range of absolute values ranges so much. I fear that the industry is looking at the wrong metric, just because it is simple.