Saturday, December 6, 2014

Embrace—Seizure Recognition Wristband


A friend of mine brought this to my attention.  It may give us another reason for hope.

There is a new device called Embrace created by Empatica.  It is a wristband that detects heightened electrical signals from stress or other factors, and is potentially an indicator of a seizure.  There is an accompanying wristband worn by a family
member/caregiver who is alerted if the person with epilepsy might be having a seizure, by receiving a vibration on his or her wristband.  Empatica has been promoting Embrace on the crowdsharing website Indiegogo  to raise money, awareness, and a market for the new wristbands. 

The research was conducted at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).  It looks promising, but I remain skeptical as to the effectiveness of the device.  Will it accurately be able to pinpoint seizures?  How many events will be false alarms?  How quickly will a response team arrive as a result of the device?

These, and many more concerns will have to be addressed in order to perfect the product.

At least, research is continuing in all areas.  I sincerely appreciate the risks and initiative people are taking to improve the lives of people with epilepsy. 

To read more about the Embrace wristband, view the links below.

1 comment:

  1. Very interesting and potentially very useful. It will be interesting to see how this technology develops!

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