Device helps with Sudden Infant Death Syndrome detection
University of Texas at Arlington researchers have obtained a patent for a device aimed at saving babies lives through improved and rapid detection of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
Electrical Engineering professor J.-C. Chiao, doctoral candidate Hung Cao and Heather Beardsley, a research engineer at UT Arlington’s Automation & Robotics Research Institute, have developed a sensitive wireless sensor system that can detect carbon dioxide exhaled by babies as they sleep. But more importantly, the sensors know when infants are not expelling carbon dioxide – quickly enough to allow intervention.
“This has the chance to save lives,” said Chiao, who also holds the Janet and Mike Greene and Jenkins Garrett professorships in the UT Arlington College of Engineering. “Our system is more accurate than current systems. Our system reduces false alarms that desensitize parents or caregivers.”
SIDS typically occurs in infants under a year old while the child is sleeping. Cases are classified as SIDS when there is no other explainable cause of death.
The new sensors can be attached to a baby’s crib or car seat. The sensors are less cumbersome than current technology that requires breathing apparatus being placed around the baby’s nose.
“Our sensors just let you know the baby is breathing normally without all the wires and breathing tubes most systems use now,” Chiao said.
Cao said he was inspired to develop the new sensor after his son’s birth in 2006.
“I was watching him through the glass in the hospital nursery and didn’t see anyone taking care of him,” Cao said. “I couldn’t get in to check so I thought, ‘How can I be sure he’s OK?’ ”
Cao was working at ARRI at the time on a project developing gas sensors for missiles. His work involved building sensors that could detect whether a missile had lost gas, which is needed to fire the missiles.
“I thought why couldn’t that same type of system be used for detecting carbon dioxide which all people breathe out,” Cao said. “The sensors could be mounted around the baby to let people know whether he’s breathing normally or not.”
Beardsley said the team has worked to reduce the cost of the device to about $100 to speed its move to the marketplace.
“That’s the key to commercialization,” Beardsley said. “People are willing to pay $100 for the device but not several thousand dollars.”
She said the wireless sensor system would be infinitely better than what exists now in the marketplace.
“Now, there are audio, video and motion detection systems to monitor infants, but it is still difficult to determine whether a baby is breathing,” Beardsley said. “Those current systems aren’t being endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics anymore. The CO2 system is much better. It represents a significant risk reduction in the health care industry.”
Provided by
University of Texas at Arlington
-
Cotton thrips posed big problem for some South Plains farmers
Jan 02, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Scientists searching for Earth-type planets should consider two-star system, researchers say
Jan 09, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Darpa seeks technology to see through clouds for warfighter support
May 02, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
The largest known true crocodile identified
May 05, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Crocodiles rock the treadmill for research
Feb 24, 2012 |
not rated yet |
0
-
Motion perception revisited: High Phi effect challenges established motion perception assumptions
Apr 23, 2013 |
3 / 5 (2) |
2
-
Anything you can do I can do better: Neuromolecular foundations of the superiority illusion (Update)
Apr 02, 2013 |
4.5 / 5 (11) |
5
-
The visual system as economist: Neural resource allocation in visual adaptation
Mar 30, 2013 |
5 / 5 (2) |
9
-
Separate lives: Neuronal and organismal lifespans decoupled
Mar 27, 2013 |
4.9 / 5 (8) |
0
-
Sizing things up: The evolutionary neurobiology of scale invariance
Feb 28, 2013 |
4.8 / 5 (10) |
14
-
Magnetic field and repulsion bewteen wires
41 minutes ago
-
Enthalpy of reaction
6 hours ago
-
Harmonic oscillation problem -Dancing pot
7 hours ago
-
Ultracapacitor to power electromagnet?
7 hours ago
-
Confusion in Electro Statics
8 hours ago
-
simple gravity question
9 hours ago
- More from Physics Forums - Classical Physics
More news stories
Whole-cell vaccine was more effective than acellular vaccine during CA pertussis outbreak
Whole-cell pertussis vaccines were more effective at protecting against pertussis than acellular pertussis vaccines during a large recent outbreak, according to a new Kaiser Permanente study published in Pediatrics.
Pediatrics
12 hours ago |
not rated yet |
0
|
New study recommends using active videogaming ('exergaming') to improve children's health
Levels of physical inactivity and obesity are very high in children, with fewer than 50% of primary school-aged boys and fewer than 28% of girls meeting the minimum levels of physical activity required to maintain health. ...
Pediatrics
May 17, 2013 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
Study shows preschoolers affected by medication-related poisonings at alarming rate
Poisonings in young children have increased over the past decade, mainly due to medications in the home. A new study led by the Central Ohio Poison Center at Nationwide Children's Hospital, found that medication-related poisonings ...
Pediatrics
May 16, 2013 |
not rated yet |
0
Implementation research and child diarrhea
While considerable recent progress has been made against childhood diarrheal diseases, the number of children dying from diarrhoea remains unacceptably high.
Pediatrics
May 14, 2013 |
not rated yet |
0
Massage therapy shown to improve stress response in preterm infants
It seems that even for the smallest of people, a gentle massage may be beneficial. Newborn intensive care units (NICUs) are stressful environments for preterm infants; mechanical ventilation, medical procedures, caregiving ...
Pediatrics
May 14, 2013 |
not rated yet |
0
Do salamanders hold the solution to regeneration?
Salamanders' immune systems are key to their remarkable ability to regrow limbs, and could also underpin their ability to regenerate spinal cords, brain tissue and even parts of their hearts, scientists have ...
Scientists identify molecular trigger for Alzheimer's disease
Researchers have pinpointed a catalytic trigger for the onset of Alzheimer's disease – when the fundamental structure of a protein molecule changes to cause a chain reaction that leads to the death of neurons ...
Study shows premature birth interrupts vital brain development processes leading to reduced cognitive abilities
Researchers from King's College London have for the first time used a novel form of MRI to identify crucial developmental processes in the brain that are vulnerable to the effects of premature birth. This new study, published ...
Leading explanations for whooping cough's resurgence don't stand up to scrutiny
Whooping cough has exploded in the United States and some other developed countries in recent decades, and many experts suspect ineffective childhood vaccines for the alarming resurgence.
CT radiation risk less than risk of examination indicator
(HealthDay)—For young adults needing either a chest or abdominopelvic computed tomography (CT), the short-term risk of death from underlying morbidity is greater than the long-term risk of radiation-induced ...
Music therapy reduces anxiety, use of sedatives for patients receiving ventilator support
New research suggests that for some hospitalized ICU patients on mechanical ventilators, using headphones to listen to their favorite types of music could lower anxiety and reduce their need for sedative medications.