StethoCloud: A Connected Stethoscope for Parents and Doctors Alike

Dr. Andrew Lin and Dr. Hon Weng Chong, founders of StethoCloud, have designed and built an inexpensive smartphone stethoscope that can be used by parents and doctors alike. The device is easy enough for a parent to use at home and cheap enough so that a doctor can use it in the developing world to diagnose diseases like pneumonia. The Company started from a winning entry into the 2012 Microsoft Australian Imagine Cup – a student technology competition. StethoCloud has come a long way since their first prototype and Andrew has answers to some of our questions below.

A: How did you decide to create a modern stethoscope?  

AL: As doctors, Hon and I have always believed that in the future, an explosion of data will help medical professionals make better informed decisions, with far more leverage on their time than today. For this to happen, we realized that we needed prolific sensors that can collect the data required. We decided on the stethoscope because the data is extremely rich, containing powerful diagnostic information, which can diagnose a broad range of respiratory and heart conditions. Initially, we entered Microsoft’s Imagine Cup competition as a student project, where we focused on pneumonia.

 

A: What is the vision and mission of StethoCloud? 

AL: Connected diagnostic devices for consumers, and a software platform to help drive in-home healthcare delivery.

 

A: Who is your target audience for the product? 

AL: Initially, we plan to market our product to parents of young children. This is because respiratory illnesses are extremely common (e.g. croup, bronchiolitis, asthma) and a connected stethoscope will become a valuable tool that can help parents get advice remotely, especially on transient events such as asthma attacks. Beyond this, the tool is also useful for those with chronic illnesses or under care.

 

A: What are the main differentiators of StethoCloud versus what is currently available in the market that makes it such an industry game changer?

AL: We have designed the device for consumers and the interface is easy to use. It will be much cheaper than existing devices. In the future, we plan to roll out algorithms that provide analytics and help with decision support.

 

A: How will StethoCloud work with other applications to paint the picture of health for an individual?

AL: It’s early days, but we plan to develop APIs to allow cross-platform integration.

 

First Opinion: Personalized Doctor Messaging, Designed for Moms

Sometimes all you need is a first opinion. Designed especially for moms, First Opinion gives users the ability to text an assigned doctor via the app during any time of day. All First Opinion users are paired with a doctor who is also a mom. Subscription based at $9/month, the user is connected with the same doctor for every subsequent exchange. Frequent topics doctors can help with include illness, pregnancy, child development, nutrition, lactation and sleep training.

I tried the app to ask what I should do about a nagging cough. Within an hour of signing up, I was matched to Dr. Preet, who messaged me her recommendations to soothe the cough. The recommendations were fairly organic, which is not a surprise since she can’t prescribe over the app. In fact, to get past HIPAA at the moment, my information remains anonymous, except for the information that I choose to share via chat. The fast, responsive messaging and thorough follow-up makes the app a great tool for concerned parents. With a recent fundraise, First Opinion is geared to support more doctor consults for first time moms.

Founder Interview: Jon Pearce, CEO of Zipnosis – Online Diagnosis and Treatment is Here

Zipnosis is an online service that diagnoses and treats common medical conditions, 24/7, by a board-certified clinician. Yes – finally a service that can prescribe you medication to common conditions by just knowing current symptoms and past history.

There are existing companies that introduce telemedicine through complex solutions using live streaming video, focused on diagnosing tough conditions. Zipnosis differs by first entering the market to treat all the millions of people with simple, more common conditions.

As Jon Pearce, CEO of Zipnosis, describes it, “If other telemedicine companies are like Blockbuster, Zipnosis is more like Netflix. We are web based and can be used on any device. We’ve been able to build a company that is a true digital platform between a patient and a provider. We are targeting more than just information – we are focused on diagnosis, treatment and triage.”

Busy growing, the company has gone from treating an initial 8-9 conditions to adding about 40 more conditions last year, and focusing this year on triage and chronic conditions. Zipnosis can be used in 14 states and expanding, and is busy partnering with health systems to expand their diversified base of clinicians. Over time, Zipnosis will broaden from treating common conditions to include chronic ones, such as cardiac disease and hyperlipidemia.

What are users saying? The company has over 90% satisfaction rates. The clinicians prescribe by guidelines, giving better, more consistent quality care. “96% of the patients that we talk to tell 3-4 people because it’s so transformative,” Jon says. “We know it works and it works quickly and accurately. People should not be afraid of the way we are offering diagnosis and treatment. It is rooted in clinical data and successes and it is a safe and effect way to get care.”

Zipnosis is leading the way to a new, leaner and faster way to get answers and treatments to immediate health concerns. Jon assured me that California is on their short list of states they will be expanding to, and I look forward to using them. For those in the lucky 14 states, try Zipnosis the next time you need an answer.

Glassomics: Newly Launched Medical Glassware Incubator

Glassomics is a newly launched medical glassware incubator, exploring and creating new ways to use glasses-like wearables in healthcare. With Google Glass growing in hype, it’s not surprising that Palomar Health and Qualcomm Life created Glassomics to innovate uses for glasswear and start discussions regarding security and liability concerns for such technologies.

Sparseware, a San Diego based software engineering firm, will be leading the development of the initial glasswear prototypes and will test the technology at the new $1B Palomar Health, deemed the “Hospital of the Future.”

Glassware abilities (for hospitals) that I find most interesting are:

• facial, voice, vital signs recognition
• image detection – cross checking prescriptions, allergy tags
• instant access to patient records/medical dictionary
• built-in camera during surgery/instructional videos
• easy note annotation
• decision support
• sending information/photos from one place to another (i.e. ambulance to surgery room)
• alerts, reminders, scheduling

I look forward to the first round of healthcare applications for glasswear and will be following this closely.

OMsignal: Making body monitoring clothing a reality

OMsignal is entering the wearables space by creating a form flattering compression shirt that uses sensors embedded into the shirt to measure vital signals and daily physical activity. The data is transmitted to a smartphone app where users can track anything from their activity, heart rate, respiratory rate, breathing balance, calories burned, emotive state and more. Users can link together to monitor each other and set alerts. Prototypes of the shirt are now being distributed to interested third-party developers who are looking for ways to use the data collected to create apps on the OMsignal platform. When the shirts are finally rolled out, I suspect a string of interesting apps will also be released.

Scanadu Scout: A Medical Tricorder Dr. McCoy Would Want

Scanadu is building products that enable users to monitor their health at any time, any place. The company is focused on wireless devices that sync to a smart phone app to show users health data, which can lead to informed health triage.

The Scanadu Scout, widely proclaimed as a “medical grade Tricorder” can measure heart rate, body temperature, respiratory rate, blood pressure, ECG, emotional stress and more. How does it work? Place the Scout on your forehead for 10 seconds and your stats will be instantly displayed on your phone app. The makers of the Scout want it to be a FDA recognized medical device. They are offering users an exploratory version of the device and asking them to opt-in to initial clinical studies. Scanadu is a participant in the Qualcomm Tricorder X-Prize and I am certainly excited to see what other healthcare forward technologies will be created from the competition.

MC10: Smart, Ultrathin and Flexible Wearable Sensors

MC10 uses stretchable circuit technology to make lightweight and flexible body monitoring patches. These patches can bend, stretch and move with the human skin they are applied on and can monitor anything from blood pressure to brain activity and muscle function. These patches transmit data to the users’ mobile device so monitoring can be done wirelessly and in real-time. The patches are powered in various ways including using thin film batteries and built-in inductive power capabilities. While the company is currently focused on athletes (i.e. health and fitness applications and partnerships with Reebok and McKesson), their products have wide and scalable possibilities ranging from monitoring babies to people with chronic disorders. MC10 raised additional capital last week.

Diagnostics For All: Simple and Low-Cost Diagnostic Tests

Diagnostics For All (DFA) is a nonprofit organization working on bringing healthcare to places with limited access to precise and affordable care. One of their main projects is to create cheap and convenient diagnostic tests using their patterned paper technology that only needs a drop of blood to give a result. This technology is essentially a piece of paper grooved with wells that are filled with assay reagents. As a drop of blood is placed on the paper, the assays change color to reflect the result of the test. About the size of a quarter and much cheaper than traditional tests, these point of care indicators are also lightweight and durable, easy to use, reliable and simple to manufacture.

Currently they are focused on making a test for liver damage, which is a known side effect from taking drugs given to tuberculosis and HIV patients. In poorer countries, these paper tests could replace having to use traditional labs and all the equipment, electricity and turnaround time that goes along with them. DFA is working on using their paper based tech to test for other diseases and has garnered support from large foundations including the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

2012 was an exciting year for healthcare with the fierce growth in mobile health technologies and the preservation of the Affordable Care Act.

I have highlighted below some of my favorite companies I’ve posted about this year, and if you haven’t checked these products out, you certainly should. Perhaps one or more will help jump start a New Year’s Resolution.

A big thank you to my followers for an amazing year and here’s to health and happiness in 2013!

– Alexis

 

Best Body Monitor and Activity Tracker:

Fitbit – Self-tracking device

Lumoback – Posture sensor and app

Misfit Shine – Self-tracking device. Not on the market yet, but the size and sleek design makes it one of my favorite

Best Self Tracking and Reminder App:

SkinVision  – Mobile app that tracks changes over time for various skin conditions

PillBoxie – Simple and effective medication management app

Cardiio  – iPhone heart rate sensor

Best Medical Answer:

Healthtap – Health questions answered by doctors and doctor locator

iTriage – Self-triage and doctor finder

iCouch – Tele-therapy website

Best Exercise Motivator:

GymPact – Monetary workout incentivizing app

StickK – Monetary goal incentivizing website

Skinnyo  – Health challenge creator, using social media to incentivize

Best Insurance and Payment Management:

Cakehealth – Streamline health insurance billing and payments onto one platform

Simplee – Compile healthcare records and bills into one easy to understand online dashboard

GoHealth – Quotes for purchasing individual health insurance

Best Up and Coming:

Proteus – Ingestible sensors, embedded in medications to capture information regarding the foods you eat and how your body reacts to them

GeckoCap – Inhaler usage tracker for kids with asthma

Vitality Glowcaps  – Prescription reminder pill cap tops that transmit data about your medication adherence

Get to Know: Stress Check Your Own Stress

Azumio has created a number of interesting health apps ranging from heart rate monitoring to sleep tracking to glucose monitoring. Stress Check designates a stress score after measuring your heart rate through the camera of your mobile device. The camera and the light of your mobile phone captures your heart rate using your pointer finger as well as analyzes your heart rate variability (HRV), which is the consistency (or lack thereof) of the intervals between heart beats. The less stressed you are, the higher your HRV and the more scattered and random consecutive heart beats you have.

The application then tracks your stress levels over time, which can differ greatly throughout the day. If you have high stress levels, Azumio has another app, Stress Doctor, which may be able to lower your stress levels.