Introduction
Rehabilitation plays a huge role in helping people suffering from various medical conditions, surgeries, or injuries. Rehabilitation depends heavily on manual therapy and physical exercises performed in the clinical setup. When people select wearable technologies, they think about fitness bands, smartwatches, augmented reality, etc. But wearable technology is beyond all these forms. Read the article to know more.
What Are the Challenges Faced by the People Post-surgery Rehabilitations in the Clinic?
The American College of Sports Medicine says that the popular fitness trend is wearable devices that can enhance the patient’s rehabilitation process, especially for those undergoing intense rehabilitation after surgery or injury. Most orthopedic surgeons say that the follow-ups of patients in the rehabilitation process, especially following physical activity, are very low.
What Is Meant by Wearable Sensors?
Wearable sensors are those that help to monitor as well as diagnose the condition. These wearable sensors are being used in the medical line where they help to continuously keep an individual under surveillance which helps to provide the required information necessary to update their health status.
What Are the Advantages of Wearable Technologies in the Rehabilitation Process?
Wearable technologies like smartwatches, motion sensors, fitness trackers, etc., have gained much popularity over the years. This is due to their ability to gather and analyze collective data for various health parameters. Some benefits of wearable technologies are
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Real-Time Monitoring:
Wearable technologies help doctors monitor the patient’s progress in the absence of the patient and in real-time. This can lead to immediate adjustments in the rehabilitation plan to reach the best outcome.
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Objective Data Collection:
The traditional rehabilitation process will depend on self-reported data by the patient. However, in this case, wearable technologies provide objective measurements regarding the patient's heart rate, movements, posture, and sleep pattern.
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Remote Assistance:
These wearable technologies will help the doctor to guide the patient remotely and can help and assist the patient even though they stay in a different place. These technologies can help patients receive rehabilitation even when present in remote regions.
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Personalization:
In the case of wearable technologies, the rehabilitation process can be designed according to the patient's convenience. Personalization can enhance the engagement, involvement, and motivation to perform rehabilitation.
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Gamification:
Wearable technologies will involve interactive features such as feedback and gamification, making the rehabilitation more engaging and enjoyable. By doing this, it will enhance the recovery process.
How Do Wearable Technologies Help in the Rehabilitation Process?
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Enhance Monitoring and Tracking of the Process:
Wearable technologies will help doctors and physical therapists monitor the activities of the patients even outside the therapy sessions. Doctors can keep track of their patients as wearable technologies help monitor their overall activity and well-being.
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Real-Time Feedback:
As the wear technologies have sensors and algorithms built in, it help provide real-time assessment and feedback on the patient's technique, balance, and posture. This helps the patient to make alterations while performing exercise and lowers the risk of injury.
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Rehabilitation at Home:
One main advantage of wearable technologies is that they help patients perform the rehabilitation process at home in their comfort, with the help of remote monitoring and other apps that help monitor the doctor or physical therapist to provide exercise and monitor the patient.
What Are the Various Devices Used in the Rehabilitation Process?
Some wearable technologies used are
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Activity Trackers:
This includes fitness bands and smartwatches that help track calories, activity levels, and step counts. They provide data that helps the therapist know the movement pattern and set patient goals.
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Motion Sensor:
These are usually worn on the knee or wrist which helps to monitor the movement accurately. This helps the therapist to target the specific area by knowing the muscle activity, motion, and joint angles. This mainly helps patients recovering from orthopedic surgeries and other musculoskeletal problems.
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Virtual Reality System:
This device helps to make the therapy session more engaging and enjoyable. This device improves if the patient suffers from balancing issues, post-stroke conditions, or long-term pain management.
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Preventive Care:
Wearable technologies also help in preventive care by discovering red flags or early signs of an injury. As wearable devices monitor movement patterns, vital signs, and biomechanics, these help alarm the patient and the therapist as they alert regarding potential issues before they escalate.
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Personalized Treatment:
Wearable technologies will provide personalized treatments for patients based on their requirements.
What Is Meant by Touchpoint Wearable Technologies?
These wearable devices use bilateral altering stimulation, tactile or micro-vibrations, which move to the brain and change the body’s response to stressors by calming down and making them more at ease. Along with reducing stress levels, it also helps to lower symptoms such as headache, chest pain, or insomnia.
How Are Wearable Technologies Game Changers in the Rehabilitation Process?
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Accurate Monitoring:
This helps the therapist to accurately monitor every movement, and heart rate and helps the therapist to design the treatment plan that the patient requires.
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Enhanced Compliance:
Wearable technologies will make the patient more engaged and active during rehabilitation, which can result in positive outcomes.
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Remote Rehabilitation:
This remote rehabilitation can be performed only with wearable devices where the patient can be involved in the rehabilitation process, staying in their comfort zone at home.
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Cost-Effective:
These technologies provide accessible and affordable solutions to the patients, lower the need for clinical visits and help to enhance overall health costs.
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Increased Rehabilitation Outcomes:
This technology improves overall health through faster recovery, mobility, and enhanced functional independence.
Conclusion
Wearable technologies are one of the fastest and most effective technologies currently being used in rehabilitation. It has provided many benefits to people who recover from any injury or post-orthopedic surgery. It helps to provide accurate data about the patient's activities by which any alterations required in the rehabilitation process can be made. It keeps the patient engaged and active throughout the process which helps to bring out positive outcomes.
