Smart (and chic) clothing monitors vital signs

Posted February 7, 2008 by Lygeia Ricciardi

There's an interesting post by Susan Promislo today on our "sister blog"--Pioneering Ideas--about clothing made with smart fabrics that can read and report on the vital signs of the wearer. As the post points out, several Project HealthDesign teams have considered integrating such fabrics with PHRs. An intriguing combination of funcitonality and (Italian!) fashion.

Comments

[Susan Promislo]

Be sure to check out the insightful comments on this post from Cecelia Horwitz and George Ferguson, members of the Project HealthDesign team from the University of Rochester's Center for Future Health. They've learned a good deal about how real people with chronic diseases feel when it comes to biosensors in their clothes and personal accessories. There may be real potential for uptake here, but it's going to require more refinement and innovation to incorporate smart clothes, watches, socks, etc. comfortably in to people's daily living.

Here's the link to their comments, and many thanks to George and Cecelia for their thoughts. Anything to add? Join the discussion at http://rwjfblogs.typepad.com/pioneer/2008/02/project-runwa-1.html.