Wearable technology exploded in popularity several years ago. And while this market has leveled out a little bit, there’s still a lot of opportunity out there for wearable technology to assist seniors with their quality of life.
One of the recent developments to come on this front is how this kind of tech can benefit those with Parkinson’s disease to thrive in their own homes as they age.
The proposed model used wearable technology to monitor medication levels in the body. By tracking how slow release medication levels are released in the body, a tailored approach to taking medication can be easily established on a person by person basis. By monitoring medication levels, the team found that they could keep Parkinson’s patients symptom free about 82 percent longer each day. The premise is that combining a more precise medication strategy along with technology will lead to an overall better outcome for those with Parkinson’s. It’s also likely that this strategy can be used with other illnesses, too.
They also believe that this research can help Parkinson’s patients to better determine whether physical therapy would be beneficial, down to how intense and frequent it should be, and even the type of PT that would be best.
A few years ago, this would not have been possible. Advances in wearable tech and lower costs have made this possible right now for the average individual right now, though.
This research comes out of Florida State University. The team published their findings in the journal, Management Science. They found that when used correctly, wearable technology has the ability to help those with severe health issues–like Parkinson’s–to get connected to higher quality and more personalized care and attention.
Right now, there’s no cure for Parkinson’s disease. There are only treatment methods and therapies that are designed to slow down symptoms and progression and make the quality of life that someone with this disease experiences better. However, advances in treatment are a very good thing, especially if they can be applied seamlessly with the things that someone is already doing. This is one of the big benefits of high quality wearable technology. It’s why the Apple Watch is successful–people already wear watches and use iPhones. Combining them into one product to simplify life just makes sense.
And it’s (one of the reasons) why Virtual Reality technology is moving so slowly. Most people don’t naturally wear a headset to perform daily tasks.
If wearable tech can be used in a way that doesn’t require lifestyle changes but brings about big changes, it will succeed. Hopefully, this is what the developers of this Parkinson’s research are attempting to do. If so, there’s a chance that it can bring about some big improvements for those dealing with this disease.
Seniors deserve access to high quality care and treatment. As technology advances, the quality of care that people receive should also advance. There are technologies out there that are still new–like some wearable tech. It will take time for doctors to implement new treatments, but progress is coming.
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