A device helps people with asthma

Science, Research, News

Aluna is developing a device and app to help people monitor chronic lung conditions like asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cystic fibrosis, and pulmonary fibrosis when away from the hospital.

Patients test their lung capacity by blowing into Aluna's device and playing a game on Aluna’s app. The results tell the user whether they're fine, need to take medication, or go to the emergency room.

"We're translating something that's found in the hospital to the home setting, and it typically requires a trained respiratory therapist to coach you on how to blow into the device and then it requires a pulmonologist to interpret the results," said Charvi Shetty, co-founder and CEO of Aluna. "We're leveraging gamification to be able to coach people on how to do the procedure, and then we're implementing machine learning through the help of the National Science Foundation money, to be able to interpret the results as if a pulmonologist were interpreting it."

More than 40 million people in the United States suffer from asthma, of which over 10 million are under the age of 18. Aluna’s device could positively impact children with asthma by helping them receive treatment prior to an attack.

We're developing a respiratory management system that's used by adults and children with chronic lung conditions like asthma, COPD, cystic fibrosis and pulmonary fibrosis. For both asthma and COPD, there's about 60 million people are affected by it in this, the US, alone. And globally it's over 500 million people.

We have a device that people just blow into and our app alerts users on whether they're fine, need to take medication, or go to the ER. What we're doing right now is translating something that's found in the hospital to the home setting. We're leveraging gamification to be able to coach people on how to do the procedure. And then we're implementing machine learning through the help of the National Science Foundation money, actually, to be able to interpret the results as if a pulmonologist were interpreting it.

You have a whole bunch of different planets and then so like, for instance, you go click on the planet and then you try to reach up to the top bar so... And then it tells you how many points you collected. And they do it a couple of other times. And then, after that, you can see your scores over time. And then we recommend that you clean it every once in a while. It's removable and you can just clean it and even stick it in the dishwasher. And then yeah let it dry.

Credit: National Science Foundation
Country of origin: United States
Language: English
Release date: November 29, 2018

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

Zinc, folic acid supplement does not improve male fertility

Dietary supplements containing zinc and folic acid — marketed as a treatment for male infertility — do not appear to improve pregnancy rates, sperm counts or sperm function, according to a study conducted by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

Detailed genetic study provides most comprehensive map of risk to date of breast cancer risk

A major international study of the genetics of breast cancer has identified more than 350 DNA ‘errors’ that increase an individual’s risk of developing the disease. The scientists involved say these errors may influence as many as 190 genes.

Obesity Can Affect Kids’ Working Memory

Obese children have a worse working memory than children of normal weight, a new study has found.

Changed route of immunization dramatically improves efficacy of TB vaccine

Researchers from the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and their colleagues have shown that simply changing the dose and route of administration from intradermal to intravenous greatly increases the vaccine’s ability to protect rhesus macaques from infection following exposure to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacterium that causes TB.

Scientists search for the clocks behind aging brain disorders

Study of flies suggests neurodegenerative disorders may speed up aging process.

Scientists Find Brain Hormone That Triggers Fat Burning

Biologists have identified a brain hormone that appears to trigger fat burning in the gut. Their findings in animal models could have implications for future pharmaceutical development.