Wearables and Their Use in Clinical Trials

Wearable devices play a significant role in the ability of the general public to monitor their health. The ability for wearables to collect and store data at any location makes them a promising addition to clinical trials, but how can they be implemented?

As wearables become more advanced and accessible, their usage in clinical trials will only increase. Kaiser Associates and Intel estimate that by the year 2025, 70% of all clinical trials will incorporate wearables. That's a large percentage, which is understandable given the benefits wearables can offer clinical trials.

Data Collection Over a Longer Period

One of the most important aspects of clinical trials includes data collection. However, with clinical trials, data is primarily collected when the volunteer visits the trial center and has the specified procedure or test done. One disadvantage of this is that it only provides information in that moment, essentially taking a snapshot of the individual's health. However, every day we go through many activities that can cause our data to shift and change, not to mention that many physiological variables vary by time of day as well.

Because of this, when the clinical trial relies solely on information collected when the volunteer visits the trial center, the research team is not receiving as clear of a picture of the effectiveness of the treatment as possible.

Using wearables allows the clinical trial team to review patient data throughout their day, allowing them to collect more data points. In addition, they can see how natural occurrences, such as time of day, can affect certain variables.

Easier for Participants

With wearables, clinical trial volunteers may not have to visit the clinical trial site as often since their data will be collected remotely. Not only is this beneficial for remote clinical trials in general, but for all clinical trials using this technology as it provides participants with more freedom. This may make it easier to recruit patients into a clinical trial and enable the sponsor to complete the trial more rapidly.

Better Patient Care

Providing the best possible patient care is exceptionally important for all clinical trials, and incorporating wearables may enhance quality of care. Wearable devices offer the clinical trial team the benefit of seeing patient data as soon as it is collected because of its ability to update remotely. This means for example, that the team may be able to watch for any dangerous or unusual vital signs and take action to remedy.

In essence, wearables allow the clinical trial team to continue putting patient care at the forefront of their mission.

If you are interested in joining a study, you can use ClinicalConnection.com to search clinical trials near you and learn more about what is available.

You can also sign up now to receive alerts for when clinical trials begin recruiting near you.

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