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Sensium "digital plaster" showcased on Russia's NTV

Toumaz's Sensium-enabled digital plaster was recently featured on Russian TV channel NTV's main news programme.

The NTV team visited The Institute of Biomedical Engineering at Imperial College London to discuss the current clinical trial taking place at St Mary’s Hospital (part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust), and to talk to Toumaz's Co-Founder Keith Errey and Rebecca Weir, Clinical and Sports Trials Executive.

You can watch the news item in full here (Russian language):
http://www.ntv.ru/novosti/181051/

English language transcript:

In Britain doctors are testing a patch, which is no good for cuts and blisters. It performs a much more important task – it continuously monitors patient's health round the clock. No more need for wires and heavyweight equipment - the smart plaster will tell everything to the doctor directly.

Report from NTV correspondent Evgeny Ksenzenko.

There is no expensive equipment in Rob’s room, neither is he covered in wires – but the nurse is not worrying about his health. The so-called digital plaster is attached to the patient’s chest. It looks just like an ordinary plaster, only slightly larger, thicker and it’s got a silicon chip inside. This chip monitors patient’s parameters via sensors, and the scientists watch how patient’s physical state changes.

Rebecca Weir, Researcher: "All Rob’s information is stored on my laptop. We can see his ECG. His heart beats with a frequency of 80 beats per minute, respiratory rate is being summed up. His respiratory rate is now 14 breaths per minute. I can say that Rob is feeling pretty good”.

In fact, the patch it's the also a “nurse”, only now works around the clock and without breaks, taking regular measures of pressure, temperature, pulse, respiration, and is powered by small batteries. If a person suddenly becomes ill, the doctors immediately receive a SOS signal to a mobile phone or pager and will immediately recognize that a patient needs help.

The distance is the only thing that restricts the patch’s functionality. At the moment patients can only wear the plaster inside a building where base stations have been installed. The signal is lost once the patient is outside. If the trials prove successful, scientist promises to improve this weak point of the plaster in the future. According to the researchers, the work of the wireless device does not harm weakened people.

Keith Errey, director of the company: "Radio signal from the patch is 20 thousand times smaller than the one from a mobile phone, i.e. very, very small. I do not think that it will create any problems."

Ideally, the digital patch should become as common as an antibacterial one. For instance it could be bought at a pharmacy. Most likely, the new product will cost around 20 pounds, or a thousand rubles. You could even buy such device for your grandfather – just in case. However, operational life of the smart plaster is only a few days, after which it will have to be replaced.

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