The Panoramic Wearable Sensor Platform can measure some of the activities and behaviours that most disrupt the activities of daily living of patients with fatigue. Like  other wearable devices, we can estimate your sleep and daily activity but by using the data from the bracelet and tags together, we can make more relevant measures.

For example, we can measure:

• how long it takes to go up and down stairs;
• how long someone spends in bed;
• how long it takes them to get up in the morning;
• how often someone gets out of a certain chair 
• how long people take a rest after even modest exercise, like going from one room to another at home.    

​We are partnering with clinicians and data scientists to study these activities with different groups of patients.

Communication between the Panoramic Bracelet and the beacons around the home.

Clinical Application: Understanding Fatigue

Fatigue can mean many different things to many different people. But there is a common idea : fatigue is nothing like tiredness. Sufferers describe fatigue as like an "off button" on their daily activities.
According to research papers, 10% of global population suffers from chronic fatigue. Some are due to treatments or diseases, but sometimes, the cause is unknown.​

Symptoms

To many patients we were able to question, fatigue is very debilitating and highly variable. 
People suffering from chronic fatigue have symptoms that can seriously disrupt their daily lives.
For example,  when their fatigue is bad, it can become almost impossible to go up and down stairs.  Even getting out of a chair and walking from one room to another is exhausting, and they need to rest afterwards.
Sufferers can spend many hours a day in their bedroom, and getting out of bed takes them ages.  Going to the kitchen to make a drink can feel like climbing a mountain. After going out shopping, they need to rest immobile in bed for several hours. 
These symptoms can fluctuate significantly from day to day. ​

Measuring fatigue

Doctors might assess patients fatigue using questionnaires, but there are not yet any reliable ways of objectively measuring fatigue symptoms. As fatigue symptoms fluctuate, and may be impacted by medicines and exercise, questionnaires don't give us the granularity to properly characterize and study fatigue. 

Treatments now and in the future

People with chronic fatigue may be given medicines, or be encouraged to take more exercise. But few patients find the currently available treatments provide much help. Medical researchers are, however, developing new medicines that may help treat fatigue. However, without good measures of fatigue, it is difficult to test whether these medicines work.