A Smartphone App That Measures Snoring

Monitoring sound to quantify snoring and sleep apnea severity using a smartphone: proof of concept.

BACKGROUND: snoring is a marker of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and is also associated with an increased risk of vascular disease.

QUESTION: can a smartphone app be used to quantify amount and severity of snoring?

METHODS: 50 patients underwent diagnostic polysomnography. The data of 10 patients were used to develop the app, and the other 40 patients were used to validate the app. The smartphone was attached to the anterior chest wall over the sternum and acquired ambient sound from the built-in microphone.

RESULTS: The app worked well, with results correlated with snoring measured by polysomnography (r = 0.93).

CONCLUSIONS: A smartphone app might prove to be useful in monitoring snoring and associated medical conditions.

J Clin Sleep Med. 2014 Jan 15;10(1):73-8

Is Fear of Math Genetic?

New research findings have found that math anxiety may in part be due to genetics. In a recent study, authors concluded that about 40 percent of math anxiety was due to genetics.  Read More

The Creative Destruction of Medicine

This book by Dr Topol outlines how destructive technologies can improve systems, and specifically how they can improve the delivery of health care. Software solutions have made the future practice of medicine not just in the hands of physicians, but also in the hands of software and hardware technologists. There is a lot of opportunities for software developers to help improve lives and decrease suffering. Highly recommended and rated on Amazon: The Creative Destruction of Medicine: How the Digital Revolution Will Create Better Health Care

New age app doctors.

Junior doctors of today are being issued with an Apple iPad when they start their education. They will be the senior consultants of the future. The junior doctors rate of adoption in new technology is far greater than before as they have been born in a digital age. This is fortunate, because every country with sophisticated health care is exposed to greater demands on the service either through increased numbers of elderly patients or more sophisticated treatments. Doctors need to be more mobile to flexibly treat their patients. They need to be able to access patient details while they are on the move. They need to be part of the innovation revolution. They are born in the digital world and need to be central to the design of clinical applications and technology in health care--they are "new age app doctors."

World Hosp Health Serv. 2013;49(3):22-4

Google Fiber May Be Expanding to Austin

Rumor is that Google Fiber is expanding to Austin, Texas. The pricing model used in Kansas City gives users three tiers of service to pick from. For only a $300 activation fee,  users will get 5 Mbps down, and 1 Mbps up for no monthly fee for 7 years. At $70 a month, users are able to step up to Gigabit speeds. 

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