Abstract
Background: As a sequelae of the COVID-19 pandemic, a large cohort of critical illness survivors have had to recover in the context of ongoing societal restrictions.
Objective:To observe the recovery of survivors of critical care admission with COVID-19 using smartwatches, evaluate how these devices enabled a remote multidisciplinary team (MDT) to support patient recovery, and assess the usability of these devices.
Methods: A prospective multi-centre observational trial in eight UK critical care units. 50 participants with moderate or severe lung injury as a result of confirmed COVID-19 disease were recruited at discharge from critical care and given a smartwatch (Fitbit Charge 3). Data collected included step count and daily resting heart rate (HR). A subgroup, the ‘MDT site’ (n=19), had their smartwatch data used to inform a regular MDT meeting. Devices were evaluated by use of a patient feedback questionnaire and direct feedback from the MDT. Participants that did not upload smartwatch data were excluded from analysis.
Results: From the overall cohort, 35 (70%) participants used and uploaded data from their smartwatch during the 1 year period. 14 users uploaded data from the MDT site. The overall cohort recorded a mean increase of 4359 (±3488) steps per day in the first month following discharge, to 7914(±4146) steps at 1 year (p<0.01). HR reduced from a mean of 79 (7) beats per minute in the first month to 69 (4) at one year following discharge (p<0.01)). The MDT subgroup increased mean step count by more than the control group (176 vs 42%, p=0.04) over the 1 year. 94% of fitbit users found their smartwatch easy to use and 80% felt that the technology helped and motivated them to recover.
Conclusions:This is the first study to report 1-year recovery of patients who survived COVID-19 critical illness using smartwatch technology. Future work could explore the role of smartwatches as part of a randomised controlled trial to assess clinical and economic effectiveness.
Objective:To observe the recovery of survivors of critical care admission with COVID-19 using smartwatches, evaluate how these devices enabled a remote multidisciplinary team (MDT) to support patient recovery, and assess the usability of these devices.
Methods: A prospective multi-centre observational trial in eight UK critical care units. 50 participants with moderate or severe lung injury as a result of confirmed COVID-19 disease were recruited at discharge from critical care and given a smartwatch (Fitbit Charge 3). Data collected included step count and daily resting heart rate (HR). A subgroup, the ‘MDT site’ (n=19), had their smartwatch data used to inform a regular MDT meeting. Devices were evaluated by use of a patient feedback questionnaire and direct feedback from the MDT. Participants that did not upload smartwatch data were excluded from analysis.
Results: From the overall cohort, 35 (70%) participants used and uploaded data from their smartwatch during the 1 year period. 14 users uploaded data from the MDT site. The overall cohort recorded a mean increase of 4359 (±3488) steps per day in the first month following discharge, to 7914(±4146) steps at 1 year (p<0.01). HR reduced from a mean of 79 (7) beats per minute in the first month to 69 (4) at one year following discharge (p<0.01)). The MDT subgroup increased mean step count by more than the control group (176 vs 42%, p=0.04) over the 1 year. 94% of fitbit users found their smartwatch easy to use and 80% felt that the technology helped and motivated them to recover.
Conclusions:This is the first study to report 1-year recovery of patients who survived COVID-19 critical illness using smartwatch technology. Future work could explore the role of smartwatches as part of a randomised controlled trial to assess clinical and economic effectiveness.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | e25494 |
| Pages (from-to) | e25494 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | JMIR Rehabilitation and Assistive Technologies |
| Volume | 9 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2 May 2022 |
Keywords
- COVID-19
- telemedicine
- rehabilitation
- critical illness
- smartphone
- digital health
- mobile health
- remote therapy
- device usability