EUROPEAN COMMISSION
MEMO
Brussels, 10 April 2014
What mHealth can do for you
See also IP/14/394
@NeelieKroesEU, Vice-President of the European Commission, responsible for the Digital
Agenda, said: "mHealth is just one of the benefits of a #ConnectedContinent – helping
patients, doctors and carers take control, wherever they are. From simple apps which help
you stick to your exercise regime – to monitoring tools for those on kidney dialysis. I am
delighted that the EU is so committed to this fascinating area. The EU has already invested
over €100 million, with about €95 million up for grabs over the next two years. And we
are now consulting on how best to unlock the huge potential of mobile healthcare."
Four EU-funded projects making the most of mHealth
(@EU_eHealth #mHealth)
1. Patients with kidney failure to get a new lease of life with
Nephron Plus
Chronic kidney disease will affect one in ten of us at some point in our lives. For those of
us unfortunate enough to suffer renal failure, the health consequences can be disastrous
and the treatments very complex. The @nephronplus project received €5 million of EU
funding to improve the lives of patients by developing a wearable artificial kidney device,
whose indications can be remotely monitored by patients on their smartphone, and by
medical staff.
A more full and active life
"Continuous, 24/7 dialysis with a
wearable device offers a smooth
and uniform extraction of toxins
over the day similar to the natural
kidney. This improves the health
condition
tremendously
and
eliminates
the
'after
dialysis
sickness syndrome' that many
patients suffer from", explains
Frank Simonis, technical manager of NEPHRON+. Constant remote monitoring of data is
also a key feature of the system. Via a personal renal care app on their mobile device,
patients will be able to consult and manage data, and include alarm settings. Their doctors
will also be able to monitor the treatment, and remotely adapt it. According to Simonis
"The NEPHRON+ system will make it possible for dialysis patients to lead a more full and
active life."
MEMO/14/266
From lab to market
The device is currently undergoing pre-clinical trials and will have to pass several rounds
of stringent tests before it is ready to be used by all patients with kidney disease.
However, the project has already reached the stage where commercial partners are ready
to take the technology to the next stage. "With kidney failure rates on the rise and
pressure on hospitals to find more cost effective and clinically effective treatments, the
market for wearable dialysis devices could be worth as much as a €15 billion per year"
says Leonidas Lymberopoulos, project coordinator. Dr Lymberopoulos also explains that
the cost of caring for a patient with kidney disease will fall because the need for
prescription medicines, nursing staff and installation costs will go down. Cost savings in
medical care are expected to reach €15,000-20,000 per patient per year. With 340,000
patients in Europe this implies an annual saving of €5-7 billion.
Organisation coordinating the NEPHRON+ project: EXODUS SA, Greece. Contact: Leonidas
Lymperopoulos, Ing, Phd - lelym@exodussa.com, Research Department, EXODUS SA
2. Easier work, better care by REACTION
Information workflow in hospitals can be an issue. "When there is a change in shifts
amongst doctors and nursing staff, a lot of information can get lost" explains Dr Thomas
R. Pieber, Professor of Medicine at the University of Graz (video). GlucoTab, developed by
the EU-funded REACTION project, is a mobile system allowing better medical information
flow in hospitals. Via sensors, the system monitors parameters such as blood glucose
levels, nutritional intake, administered drugs and insulin sensitivity and gives therapy
advice; the data is stored on a server and is shared via tablets used by the medical staff.
Nurses and doctors at the Medical
University Graz, Austria, fully adopted
the system. "We are breaking new
ground because, for the first time, the
workflow for medical treatment is
supported by a technical solution", says
Dr Thomas R. Pieber. The system has
reduced the workload, increased the
autonomy of nurses and improved the
quality of care. GlucoTab has recently
obtained CE marking, making its use
possible in all hospitals. It has also
recently been awarded an Austrian prize for the best commercial application in HumanTechnology-Interface.
REACTION also supports self-management and life-style changes for diabetic patients.
Chorleywood Health Centre in the UK is using the platform to exchange information with
patients who monitor glucose levels in their blood, their weight and other parameters at
home. Doctors and nurses can then give advice on diet, activity and medication.
Organisation coordinating the project: ATOS SA, Spain. Contact:
lydia.montandon@atosresearch.eu, Research and Innovation Atos, Spain
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Lydia
Montandon
-
3. Guiding patients with chronic diseases with MobiGuide
The EU-funded MOBIGUIDE project @MobiGuideProj
has developed an intelligent mobile system to guide
patients with chronic diseases. Research focused on
cardiac patients (patients with atrial fibrillation) and
women with complications during pregnancy (high
blood pressure and diabetes). However the system
developed will be relevant to a whole range of
chronic and acute medical conditions. The patient
wears sensors that can monitor their biosignals
(e.g. heart rate, blood pressure); these signals are
transmitted to their smartphone and from there to
a powerful back-end computer. The data generated
is analysed by the MOBIGUIDE decision-support tool, on the basis of patients' historical
clinical data. The tool alerts the patient about actions that should be taken and asks them
questions, in case additional information is needed. Then the system makes
recommendations regarding lifestyle changes or contacts care providers. All
recommendations regarding therapy, based on evidence-based and state-of-the-art
clinical guidelines, are transmitted to the patients' care providers. The system is currently
being tested.
Organisation coordinating the project: UNIVERSITY OF HAIFA, Israel. Contact: Dr Val Jones v.m.jones@utwente.nl, Senior Researcher/Associate Professor Telemedicine Group, Biomedical
Signals and Systems, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Twente, The Netherlands
4. An app to cope with stress by Interstress
Escape to a tropical island in 3D virtual reality where you can learn and practice effective
relaxation techniques. This is possible with the Positive Technology App, developed by the
EU-funded INTERSTRESS project. The aim is to reduce your stress and improve your
health by self-managing and treating your stress through your smartphone or tablet. You
can use compatible biosensors available in the market (e.g. a special bracelet), which
enable you to control the features of the virtual environment through your heart and
respiration rates; for instance, based on your
heartbeat, the sensors may increase or the
decrease the size of a virtual campfire or of a
virtual waterfall. This app can also send you alerts
when you are too stressed and gives feedback.
Too much stress can lead to other mental health
problems, such as anxiety and depression, and
also physical illness such as cardiovascular
diseases. The app is already available for free on
the iTunes store, where it is highly rated (4+).
The Positive Technology App won the World
Summit Award-Mobile prize for best mHealth app.
Organisation coordinating the project: ISTITUTO
AUXOLOGICO ITALIANO, Italy. Contact: Andrea Gaggioli - andrea.gaggioli@unicatt.it, Researcher,
Department of Psychology, Catholic University of Milan, Italy
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Funding available under Horizon 2020
Through Horizon 2020 #H2020, the new research and innovation programme, many more
projects on mHealth will be funded. One of the focus areas of Horizon 2020 is
"personalising health and care" (PHC). It notably supports citizen empowerment through
self-management of health and disease, health promotion and disease prevention.
mHealth is the perfect tool for that.
The PHC calls have a total budget of €549.3 million for 2014 and €537 million for 2015.
PHC calls specifically mentioning mHealth are PHC-26-2014 (€59.6 million), PHC-27-2015
(€15 million) and PHC-28-2015 (€20 million). The 2015 figures are indicative.
Contact for press: Email: comm-kroes@ec.europa.eu Tel: +32.229.57361, Twitter:
@RyanHeathEU
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