Statista shows us that investment in wearable medical tech has only grown from 2020 to 2024, reaching a peak of $13.62 billion in North America alone. Experts project that investment into wearable medical device R&D and production will continue to rise year after year, reaching almost $31 billion in the U.S. and more than $70 billion worldwide.
Wearable medical devices will only continue to grow more widespread among consumers, and their capabilities may expand as well. In this article, we’ll break down recent advancements in wearable medical technology that showcase how far the tech has grown since its inception — and how much more it may continue to develop. We’ll also dive deep into today’s use cases for wearable tech, exploring its role in proactively managing chronic conditions and tailoring treatment plans, and speculate on how those use cases may evolve in tandem with the tech.
Advancements in Wearable Medical Technology
Wearable medical technology has been around in some form since the late ‘50s, when Leland C. Clark deployed electrodes to detect oxygen levels in patients’ blood. Being a prototypal form of the technologies we use today, this method was only designed for use in the operating room — even still, it allowed Clark and his colleagues to operate with a greater level of insight into patient stability.
Nowadays, wearable tech has progressed by leaps and bounds, offering access to the following:
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Real-time, continuous health monitoring: Wearable devices track and record critical health data without any manual input from the user, and display that data in a visually oriented, user-friendly interface for consumers. The resultant democratization of data gives patients the ability to better take control of their own health, which can unlock high-quality holistic treatments for independent-minded patients. Wearable medical devices can be an invaluable aid for holistic healing, allowing patients to develop their own personalized treatment plans, adjust remedies based on efficacy, and manage all aspects of their personal health.
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Early diagnosis of emergent conditions: As a direct result of the above capability, wearable devices can also flag warning signs of developing health conditions, reporting to both the consumer and the healthcare provider as soon as concerning data emerges.
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Remote medicine delivery: Instead of requiring patients to visit hospitals frequently to receive life-saving treatment for conditions like diabetes or cardiovascular diseases, some wearables have the capability to periodically and autonomously deliver medicine straight to the patient’s system. Wearable injectors such as those produced by BD Libertas can be programmed to release a specific, set amount of medication into the user’s system; all with minimal patient input.
It is worth noting that there is a difference in capability between consumer-grade wearables and medical-grade wearables; a reality that can cause some consternation where bring-your-own-device policies are accepted. Medical-grade devices have greater controls in place to ensure data privacy and protection than most of their consumer-grade counterparts. However, the capabilities of both, especially when used in tandem to facilitate better treatment, are evolving at a truly astounding rate.
Use Cases: Where They Are, And Where They’ll Go
To predict the use cases that will emerge as wearable medical tech continues to evolve, we can only look at how they’re changing patients’ lives today and speculate. Some of the astounding ways wearables are being deployed by healthcare providers include:
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Identifying and proactively managing chronic conditions: Sometimes, patients experience symptoms they don’t understand the root cause of, like being tired all the time, which can have a range of causes such as sleep apnea, iron deficiency anemia, and thyroid disorders. However, wearables can help identify a condition like sleep apnea. Doctors can view the device’s readings, contact the patient, and recommend lifestyle changes or treatments to help them manage the condition before it worsens.
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Personalizing treatment plans: The transmission of real-time data from wearables also allows healthcare providers to see in real-time which treatments work and which do not. They can then use those insights to tweak, modify, or create personalized treatment plans uniquely suited to each patient that will better address the issue.
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Broadening clinical trial participation: Wearables eliminate the need for clinical trial participants to be present in a medical facility to engage, allowing for a wider selection of would-be subjects’ involvement.
Experts predict that the focus of wearables’ future development will be centered around making them more “wear and forget.” Less intrusive devices that require even less patient interaction, such as skin-like sensors, patches, and devices that are seamlessly woven into clothing.
The future of treatment will be predictive, powered by wearable medical technology and its corresponding deep insights into patient health. We hope this brief primer gave you some insight into the development of this new, exciting technology, and where it may go as its capabilities continue to expand.
Amanda Winstead is a writer from the Portland area with a background in communications and a passion for telling stories. Along with writing she enjoys traveling, reading, working out, and going to concerts. If you want to follow her writing journey, or even just say hi you can find her on Twitter.
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