Baby Pajamas Talk To Your Phone, Tablet Via Cloud

9 Mobile Health Apps Worth A Closer Look

AT&T has extended its commitment to supporting wireless technology for healthcare, signing an agreement with Exmovere Holdings to wirelessly enable Exmovere's patented biosensor baby pajamas, Exmobaby.

Exmobaby is designed to alleviate parents' concerns about babies' health risks such as sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). The product is a snap-on transmitter that measures vital signs in infants, including heart rate, skin temperature, moisture, and movement.

As part of the agreement, AT&T's wireless network will enable the transmission of sensor data from the baby pajamas to the cloud. The data is transmitted at regular intervals and accessed by computer, tablet, or smartphone. The information is used to interpret the baby's emotional state and behavior, and alerts are transmitted to parents and caregivers when their babies require care.

[ Remote monitoring could help save babies' lives and healthcare dollars, says American Telemedicine Association. See Neonatal Telemedicine Could Save Medicare $186 Million. ]

"There are about 4 million babies born every year in the U.S. and many times these infants' parents and grandparents are either at work during the day or reside in other cities," David Haight, VP of business development at AT&T emerging devices organization, told InformationWeek Healthcare. "Traditional baby monitors are limited to the infant's home; AT&T wants to enable these interactions to occur from anywhere in the world."

AT&T officials also said they have received tremendous interest and positive feedback from hospitals and baby nurseries, and are working with Exmovere to host their sensor data and application, as well as finalizing the marketing and distribution of the product.

Officials at Exmovere said the company will submit a pre-market notice to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration before releasing Exmobaby to consumers in the United States. Exmobaby is not designed for medical diagnosis or treatment, and its software does not generate any information related to treatment regimens.

"Working with AT&T gives Exmobaby powerful capabilities for parents and child care providers worldwide," David Bychkov, CEO of Exmovere Holdings, said in a statement. "And, the scope of AT&T's wireless networks provides an ideal distribution platform for our flagship technology going forward."

Bychkov also said Exmobaby creates a comprehensive biophysical approach to baby monitoring that transmits useful physiological and movement data that is easy to understand.

"Our cutting edge approach makes it easy for an individual to keep an eye on their baby without actually being there. By utilizing AT&T's vast infrastructure and support, Exmobaby can be a game changer for parents, grandparents, and caregivers on a global basis while providing significant revenue for Exmovere shareholders," Bychkov added.

Exmovere is the latest in a growing number of companies that have forged a partnership with AT&T to use the company's wireless networks to enable their health related products. For example, AT&T is providing eCardio Diagnostics with machine-to-machine wireless data and mobile connectivity for near-real-time, remote monitoring of cardiac patients. eCardio's monitoring solution on cardiac devices allows heart patients to recover at home rather than spend additional time in the hospital.

Zephyr Technology also uses AT&T's wireless network to provide cardiologists access to Zephyr BioHarness, which is designed to measure critical vital signs, including electrocardiogram, heart rate, breathing rate, and skin temperature data.

When are emerging technologies ready for clinical use? In the new issue of InformationWeek Healthcare, find out how three promising innovations--personalized medicine, clinical analytics, and natural language processing--show the trade-offs. Download the issue now. (Free registration required.)