by Wearable technology has been playing a huge role in promoting physical activity among users. It allows users to set their fitness goals and monitor their progress, thus motivating them to keep going. Using multipurpose wearable devices, users can track their location with GPS, answer calls, or view text messages quickly.
This is done while running, playing, jumping, or engaging in other physical activities. In this sense, wearable technology empowers users to engage more in physical activities and lead better lives. The revolutionary tech is also helpful in health informatics, like telehealth and remote monitoring, precision rehabilitation, and more.
Moving forward in this blog, we will explore what wearable technology and its role in physical activities is:
What is Wearable Technology?
Wearable technology refers to electronic devices that can be worn on the user’s body. They come in various forms, such as watches, jewelry, medical devices, or even clothing. With regular advancements in technology, wearables can now be implanted in the user’s body or even tattooed on the skin. These hands-free gadgets have multiple practical uses, powered by microprocessors and data transfer capabilities via the Internet.
Wearable technology is prevalent in physical activity, both clinical and non-clinical. It serves as an instrument for managing health-related parameters, tracking daily physical activities and dietary patterns, and recommending exercises.
Many studies indicate that the utilization of wearables has significantly improved factors related to physical activity, fitness, metabolism, and even psychology. So, wearable tech positions itself as an indispensable technology for continuous physical activities, remote health assessment, and better healthcare.
Effects of wearable devices on physical activity in chronic patients
Chron ic diseases such as diabetes, arthritis, COPD, heart diseases, and mental illnesses have huge impacts on public health. So, managing chronic conditions is an essential goal for international healthcare organizations.
Physical activity plays a major role in managing chronic diseases. It helps manage obesity and blood pressure, which are the two most critical risk factors for such conditions. Almost all rehabilitation programs for chronic conditions include physical activities, such as moderate-intensity workouts and strength training.
Traditional interventions like written health information and telephone counseling are effective but not feasible in routine care. It is because these interventions heavily rely on human resources and time and can only offer mechanical feedback.
On the other hand, wearable devices can assist in various methods of improving physical activity, including real-time health monitoring, goal-setting, action cues, and customized feedback.
Role of Wearable Technology in Physiotherapy
Wearable technology has a massive impact on physiotherapy. Also known as Physical Therapy (PT), physiotherapy involves using a manual, hands-on approach with soft tissue and fascial releases, massages, and stretches. Primarily focused on physical health, physiotherapy can also address psychological and social wellbeing using rehabilitative interventions, such as manual therapy, education, and many more. Physiotherapy is suitable for people of all ages.
Wearable devices allow physiotherapists to deliver care plans remotely and gather insightful data about their patients in real-time arrangements. Some prominent wearable devices available in the physical therapy landscape right now are:
Skin Sleeves: Physiotherapists use skin sleeves to ensure their patients are following their customized care plan and to collect biometric data. These devices play a major role in the sports performance area by allowing therapists to track performance levels and fine-tune care plans for improved performance.
Smartwatches and Fitness Trackers: Smartwatches and fitness trackers are the most ubiquitous wearable technology physiotherapy devices. Using these gadgets, users can track their heart rate and blood pressure, log their meals, count the number of steps they walk each day, etc. When it comes to physiotherapy, smartwatches and fitness trackers monitor patient progress and make adaptations in their care plans.
Sensors: Physiotherapists can place small and discrete electromyography sensors in high-impact areas to gather biometric data and make efforts for improved health. Electromyography sensors can measure electrical signals from the muscles. Therapists can use this technology in various manners, for example, by placing a sensor in the patient’s sock to determine foot contact, embedding it in clothing to collect data useful for preventing future injury, or monitoring muscle activities to identify dysfunctions.
Fall Detection Devices: Fall detection wearable devices alertdesignated individuals in case of slip-and-fall accidents. So, they can improve response time and prevent serious injury. These devices can also help prevent future falls by analyzing patient data and alerting them of health emergencies that could lead to a fall.
Virtual and Augmented Reality Physiotherapy
Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) seem to have huge potential in terms of making physiotherapy administration easier and more efficient.
Virtual reality immerses users in a digital world using a VR headset that covers the eyes. Virtual reality physiotherapy launches patients into digital worlds to perform fun activities in their routines. For example, patients can pop balloons with virtual swords as a part of their VR physiotherapy plan. In 2001, GestureTek – an interactive technology company – launched the IREX system that employed a camera connected to a computer. It would project the patient’s body image onto the screen in real time and immerse them in dynamic VR video games. Then, patients are guided through exercises with on-screen game elements.
Similarly, AR layers computer-generated elements over real-world elements to create physical reality. In physiotherapy, AR can project points based on angular measurements. This further helps patients safely perform their care and fitness routines by themselves. For example, patients may see floating boxes as targets on a screen for their exercise movement. The boxes are not actually there, but it looks like they are.
Both these technologies combine to offer benefits like improved pain management, increased desire to engage in physical rehabilitation, and improved clinical oversight.
Robotics and Exoskeletons in Physiotherapy
Robotic exoskeletons are wearable devices featuring powered joints to assist with movement and mobility. These devices mainly serve two purposes:
- Rehabilitation
- Gait assistance
Research shows that these devices offer clinical benefits like improvements in bowel and bladder function, bone density, pain management, lean body mass, muscle tone, and improved walking speed.
Robotic exoskeletons enable gait training for stroke and spinal cord injury patients. Research shows robotic gait training improves balance, mobility, and cardiovascular health faster and better than conventional therapy. In addition, present research is exploring the potential of brain-machine interfaces for functional electrical stimulation and prosthetic control to restore voluntary movement.
Some other exciting developments in this field are:
- Exoskeletons with customized joint assistance via artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to determine patient deficits and enable real-time torque modulating.
- AI assistants will support physiotherapists conducting tele-rehab and providing tailored exercise programs.
- Neural interfaces for mind-controlled robotic exoskeletons and limbs for uniformity of thoughts and movements.
- Interconnected networks for remote monitoring and therapy modulation in both home and clinical settings.
Gamification and Physiotherapy
The idea of using gamification in physical therapy stemmed from characteristics like attractiveness, engagement, and motivation. These variables are critical in physiotherapy because they involve reward-related dopaminergic systems in our brains. Dopaminergic systems offer learning through long-term potentiation of neural connections.
Gamification in physiotherapy is enabled with the use of wearable VR and AR technologies as they make therapists mode dependent on immersive, computer-generated environments that help improve patient treatment and boosts their motivation.
In this context, gamification can be used in various ways, as listed below:
- Progress tracking and rewards: Patients earn points based on their performance. This gives them a sense of accomplishment and motivation to keep going.
- Competition and support: Encouraging friendly competition and support among patients, promoting a sense of camaraderie.
- Personalisation: Gamified mobile health applications can be customised as per the patient’s preferences and goals to keep therapies relevant.
3D Printing and Physiotherapy
As personalisation is becoming critical to patients, 3D printing can truly reimagine physiotherapy. Imagine a physiotherapist customising and printing an ankle brace tailored to the patient’s needs in front of the patient. Immediate, personalised care! This can be achieved with 3D printing.
While further research is still needed in this area, 3D printing already has practical rehabilitation applications. For example, custom braces made from 3D scans speed up recovery by stabilising injuries. Lightweight exoskeletons help patients with limited mobility.
Here is how 3D-printing could transform rehabilitation and physiotherapy:
- Personalised equipment like braces, orthotics, and prosthetics with precise fit for patient’s anatomy and needs.
- Personalised medical products for better outcomes.
- Faster design means timely treatment.
- 3D printing facilitates accessibility by enabling use at home or in low-resource areas.
Future of Wearable Technology in Physiotherapy
As it must be clear to you now, wearable technology is set to transform the physiotherapy landscape with its potential. Although technology has already introduced significant development in the field, massive research is still needed. The industry also needs efforts from technologists and innovators, physiotherapists, and other concerned professionals to take things ahead.
Many scientific conferences and other formal events also focus on the role of emerging technologies in physiotherapy and other healthcare areas. At these events, experts from various relevant fields discuss their ideas and present their findings related to wearable technology and physiotherapy. So, you can expect significant innovation in the future.
