20+ Groundbreaking RPM Devices in Healthcare

Remote patient monitoring devices change the landscape of modern medicine because of their groundbreaking functionality that helps patients with chronic conditions share valuable data with their healthcare providers.

In 2021, the market for remote patient monitoring has reached USD 1.45 billion. By 2030, it will be worth USD 4.07 billion, with a growth expected to be at 8.74% CAGR (Source ).

Binariks is a partner with experience building and implementing RPM solutions in various settings. In this article, we overview more than 20 examples of remote patient monitoring to give you tips for choosing the best one for your practice.

Key benefits & types of RPM devices

There are dozens of examples of remote patient monitoring on the market. For easier understanding, they can be placed in several groups based on their functions:

• Vital signs monitoring devices monitor crucial medical parameters of a patient, such as heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, and body temperature. Examples of these devices include at-home blood pressure monitors, pulse oximeters, and remote ECG devices. They aid chronic condition management and can help patients in case there is a risk of medical accident that may endanger patients lives. These are an example of remote patient monitoring critical in telehealth settings because they offer real-time insights into patients' health status from a distance and can help medical professionals save the lives of a patient.
• Wearable devices, such as wristbands, watches, or patches, track health and fitness metrics, including steps taken, sleep patterns, heart rate, and more. These devices are easy to use and allow continuous health monitoring in various everyday environments. They allow a broad category of people beyond people with chronic conditions to track their health and support a healthy lifestyle.
• Implantable devices are surgically placed inside a patient's body to monitor specific health conditions. Examples include implantable cardiac monitors, which record the heart's electrical activity over time, and implantable glucose monitors, which continuously track blood glucose levels. These devices may help optimize treatment plans, improve disease management, and reduce hospital visits for patients with specific chronic conditions.
• Mobile apps & smartphone-connected devices are applications with a smartphone for health data. Examples include mobile apps for tracking nutrition, physical activity, and sleep and devices like smart scales. These are accessible devices that help patients seamlessly keep track of various metrics. The benefits include lifestyle tracking and education about health and self-management.

It is worth noting that all rpm devices are controlled using special software. There are dozens of solutions the from leading remote patient monitoring companies on the market today.

20+ groundbreaking RPM devices

• Pulse oximeter is a non-invasive device that measures the oxygen saturation level in a patient's blood, heart rate, and pulse.

They are placed on a fingertip or earlobe and use red and infrared light to detect blood oxygen. The device can also see abnormalities in the patient's blood flow to the brain. Pulse oximeters are useful for patients at risk of hypoxemia, including those with COPD or heart disease. The devices track SpO2 levels and transmit the data to the doctor.

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• Blood pressure monitor is a health monitoring device used to track the blood pressure of a patient at home.

The technology works by the patient wrapping the cuff around their arm. The RPM device then inflates it, reading the systolic and diastolic pressure. These readings are sent in real-time to the doctor for review.

This medical monitoring device is prescribed to patients with a risk of hypertension and heart conditions. It helps to see how different factors, such as diet, physical activity, medication, and stress, influence blood pressure. It is also helpful in diagnosing many conditions, including kidney dysfunction.

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• A continuous glucose monitor is a remote patient monitoring device that tracks blood sugar levels throughout the day.

It uses a tiny sensor under the skin to take readings every few minutes. These devices provide critical information for people with type 1 and 2 diabetes. It helps them manage their blood glucose levels more effectively, prevents potential complications, and helps manage medication intake throughout the day.

Based on the data, the patients can receive notifications that it is time to take their medication and adjust their diet or exercise. It also helps to track the impact of stress on blood sugar levels. The medical professional can then set a follow-up appointment based on the information received from a glucose monitor.

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• Insulin pump is a personal health monitoring device that delivers insulin to patients with insulin-dependent diabetes.

It more closely mimics the natural insulin release by the pancreas than multiple daily insulin injections. The device can adjust the amount of insulin delivered based on the patient's blood glucose levels, meals, and physical activity. It also keeps track of the dosage and determines the time of the day when insulin should be delivered.

• Anticoagulation testing device, also known as a home INR machine, measures the exact time it takes for the patient's blood to clot.

The RPM device takes a small blood sample placed on a testing strip. It reads the strip and generates an International Normalized Ratio (INR) sent to the healthcare provider in real-time.

Patients on anticoagulation therapy, such as the ones with deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, and mechanical heart valves commonly use the health monitoring device. Due to the fact that anticoagulants have a narrow therapeutic window, the testing device helps the patient to control the medication doses and minimize potential side effects, such as bleeding.

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• Electrocardiography (ECG) devices at home are used to monitor the electrical activity of the heart over a period of time.

By attaching electrodes to the skin, the device can trace heart rhythm and rate, identifying any abnormalities and potential irregular heart rate. These readings are transmitted to the healthcare provider for analysis. ECG monitoring medical devices can track the symptoms of various conditions, including arrhythmia, myocardial ischemia, and ST depression. ECG PRM devices are available in different shapes and forms, including handheld devices, wearable, and patches.

• Heart rate monitors are remote health monitoring devices that are used to track heart rate per minute in real time.

The patient wears these devices on the wrist or chest, and it records the number of heartbeats per minute. These health monitoring devices are helpful for patients with different cardiovascular conditions and people engaging in specific exercise regimes. They can assist in diagnosing arrhythmias, syncope, presyncope, and a range of other cardiological conditions.

• Smart inhalers are remote health monitoring devices for patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

These rpm devices combine the traditional medication delivery method of an inhaler with digital technology to enhance disease management. They track medication usage, send reminders, and forward information to medical professionals and caregivers. Some smart inhalers can provide feedback on inhalation techniques, ensuring the medication is delivered effectively.

Some might also send alerts to healthcare providers or caregivers if a patient uses their rescue inhaler excessively, indicating a potential asthma attack or severe COPD exacerbation.

• Medical alert systems help provide emergency assistance to patients with life-threatening chronic conditions.

They are also helpful to elderly patients who are at risk of experiencing painful falls that lead to head traumas and other injuries. When a patient experiences an accident, they can press the button and alert their physician about life-threatening occurrences.

Some medical alert systems can inform medical professionals without the patient's actions. This can help minimize the risk of death after a life-threatening event and ensure that patients at risk receive immediate help.

• Maternity care monitoring helps pregnant women monitor various health indicators, such as heart rate, blood pressure, and fetal heart rate.

More complex medical monitoring devices of this kind can even track the contractions, which allows for determining when it is time to come to the hospital for labor.

Such remote monitoring devices help expecting mothers better control their pregnancy and minimize the need for in-person hospital visits if the pregnancy is not considered high-risk.

• Pediatric at-home monitoring devices track children's vitals, such as heart rate, temperature, and oxygen levels, and send them to healthcare providers.

This personal health monitoring device is mostly used by the parents of children with chronic conditions, as they allow healthcare professionals to observe their symptoms and changes in their health status. Remote patient monitoring devices can also help analyze different treatments' effectiveness and side effects.

• Remote stethoscope is a remote patient monitoring device that allows the healthcare provider to listen to a patient's heart and lung sounds from a distance.

The sound waves are converted into electronic signals and sent to the healthcare provider. This device and corresponding program can make remote diagnosis more efficient and reliable, minimizing the need for extra hospital appointments.

• Smart scales are health monitor devices that measure weight, track body fat percentage, muscle mass, bone density, and water percentage.

These are helpful not just for weight monitoring but also for managing chronic conditions where weight indicates symptoms, for example, water retention. The conditions that benefit from smart scales include heart conditions, anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, lupus, diabetes, and certain cancers. This home health monitoring device is also useful for preventing and treating obesity.

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• Smart beds are mattresses with in-built technology that helps improve sleep quality.

The features of this home health monitoring device may include sleep tracking, adjustability, temperature adjustment, heart rate tracker, and others. They are used by people with and without chronic conditions to monitor sleep patterns and improve sleep hygiene and the quality of sleep.

• Smart thermometer is a home health monitoring device that measures body temperature and syncs the data with the corresponding application.

The monitored body temperature is then shared with the healthcare provider to indicate the possibility of illness or infection. It is a commonly used device among patients of all ages, especially during flu season or global pandemics.

• Medication monitoring RPM devices help track the intake of subscription medication of any kind.

Real-time communication can remind patients to take their medication at the correct times and in the precise dosages, thereby preventing adverse drug events (ADEs). This is particularly helpful for psychiatric patients who can forget to take their meds in time and patients with extremely complex medication intake regimens.

• Patient wearables like fitness trackers and smartwatches can help collect data such as heart rate, physical activity, and sleep patterns.

This helps identify potential health issues and monitor the progress of health interventions. These remote patient monitoring devices help create a comprehensive picture of an individual's health and facilitate proactive care, early intervention, and personalized treatment plans.

Patient wearables can help doctors monitor patients' health data without critical conditions, minimizing appointment needs.

• Connected contact lenses are remote monitoring devices that allow intraocular pressure monitoring, a crucial metric for glaucoma patients.

The lenses wirelessly send this data to the healthcare provider. After analyzing the data, the provider can modify the treatment plan if necessary.

• Sleep monitors are health monitoring devices that use sensors to track patients' sleep patterns.

The metrics can calculate sleep duration, quality, and instances of sleep apnea. Healthcare professionals can diagnose sleep disorders and formulate effective treatment plans based on the information obtained from these devices.

• Neurological monitoring devices help to observe brain activity and track seizures or cognitive function changes.

These devices are vital in managing patients with epilepsy and Alzheimer's. They enable healthcare providers to adjust medication dosage and assess treatment effectiveness.

• Remote spirometry devices enable patients with respiratory conditions like asthma or COPD to measure their lung function from the comfort of their homes.

They can monitor parameters like lung volume and flow rate. This can help track disease progression and observe the effectiveness of specific treatments.

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How to choose the right RPM

Choosing the right remote patient monitoring is a meticulous process involving going through many different solutions before determining what's best for your practice.

It's essential to note that for medical monitoring devices to work effectively, they must operate within a unified system. This typically involves the implementation of specific software solutions. Here are some steps that would help you succeed:

1. Evaluate the needs of your practice: Before picking the remote monitoring system, you should know for sure what exactly you would like to achieve with it and which data you want monitored. Decide whether it is specific vital signs or issues you must be alerted about.
2. Integration with existing systems: Consider how the device you pick interacts with the existing health IT infrastructure and electronic health records (EHR) system.
3. Follow centralized data management practices: The software that you pick for remote patient monitoring should be able to receive and store data from various devices in one place.
4. Involve user training: All professionals within your hospital or company should be educated on how to use the software and devices and analyze the received data.

Custom RPM devices from Binariks

Creating RPM devices is a lengthy and technologically advanced process that may benefit from involving a dedicated IT team. Binariks has the necessary experience with architecture consulting for patient health monitoring applications .

Binariks can help you with the following:

• Compliance with regulations: Our team can modify the solution to cater to a range of patient Protected Health Information (PHI) regulations within various hospital settings.
• Future integration plans: Binariks plans integration after the client envisions future integration with multiple hospital systems.
• FHIR integration: We help to ensure that the solution architecture incorporates integration with Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources (FHIR).
• Patient engagement solution design: Binariks helps design patient engagement solutions, considering the possibility of various user flow options.

Final thoughts

Remote patient monitoring devices have become necessary for contemporary hospital settings and at-home health management.

Vital signs monitoring devices inform practitioners about essential changes in their patient vitals. Wearable devices help people monitor their lifestyles and prevent chronic conditions. Implantable devices offer improved treatments for chronic diseases. Mobile apps & smartphone-connected devices give people valuable resources to monitor their health.

All in all, RPM devices revolutionize in-person care, giving providers a complete picture as an alternative to in-person visits. Building a remote person monitoring solution for your practice is a necessary step to make in the 2020s.