⚕️ Patent War In Healthcare Wearables

Plus: Deep dive into interoperability, and more

December 20, 2023

Good Morning. If Apple Watch happened to be on your holiday shopping list, the news we have might have you on the move.

Here’s a glimpse into what we’re covering today:

  • Patent War In Healthcare Wearables

  • Deep Dive: Interoperability in Healthcare

  • 3 Cutting Edge Digital Twin Use Cases

TOP STORY
Patent War In Healthcare Wearables

What’s Happening: Apple is pulling its Apple watch Series 9 and Ultra 2 smartwatches from the US markets to comply with an import ban issued by the International Trade Commission. This comes following its patent dispute with medical technology company Masimo over the blood oxygen feature and SpO2 sensor on the devices.

The bigger picture: Recent times have seen blurring of lines between consumer health wearables and FDA approved medical devices. 

Non-medical devices provide useful insight into behaviors that may lead to better health. They also open up new avenues of opportunity for healthtech entrepreneurs looking to dabble in the world of healthcare mobile and wearable apps. However, for medically relevant readings, approved medical devices is what patients need to fall back on.

The recall comes in wake of another patent battle of Apple and AliveCor over portable ECG tech.

What’s next: Apple Watches with blood oxygen measuring capabilities will be removed from Apple’s website from tomorrow, and from its stores on Dec. 24. The older version of the Apple Watch, which tracks heart rate and physical activity, will still be available.

The ITC import ban is currently undergoing a presidential review period, and President Joe Biden will have the opportunity to veto it by Dec. 25.

In the meanwhile, Apple is working on a range of legal and technical options, if the ban holds. Engineers at Apple are moving to make changes to algorithms in the smartwatches, adjusting how the technology determines oxygen saturation and presents the data to customers, Bloomberg reported.

The bigger implication is around whether or not Apple can use the blood oxygen sensor technology that is in question on future devices, or if they'll have to reach a settlement or come up with a new solution.

DEEP DIVE
What Is Healthcare Interoperability?

Interoperability is the ability of different information systems, devices and applications to securely exchange, interpret, and use patient data. 

Why it matters: The goal of interoperability is to facilitate seamless communication and data sharing among various healthcare entities, such as hospitals, clinics, laboratories, pharmacies, and other healthcare providers. This exchange of information is crucial for delivering coordinated and patient-centeric care.

Interoperability standards and frameworks: Interoperability standards and frameworks are guidelines and specifications governing effective communication and data exchange among systems, applications, and devices. Key standards include:

  • HL7 (Health Level Seven)

  • FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources)

  • C-CDA (Consolidated Clinical Document Architecture)

  • DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine)

  • IHE (Integrating the Healthcare Enterprise)

Read more about interoperability standards, levels, challenges and importance of health information exchange here.

ANALYSIS
3 Ways Digital Twins Are Making Waves In Healthcare

Digital twins in health: The ability of technology to create virtual models based on combining data on diseases, organs, tissues, medications, and treatments, only to test the efficacy of drugs, medical devices, and research is hyping the importance of creating digital twins in healthcare. 

Here are 3 ways in which digital twin technology is leaving a mark on the healthcare industry: 

  1. Cleveland Clinic was supported with a $3.14 million grant by the NIH to conduct research on healthcare disparities using digital twin technology.

  2. ‘Emma’, a newly launched digital twin technology by Dassault helps to analyze simulations in the Living Heart project, Living brain studies for Alzheimer's disease, and testing of CorNeat Vision corneal transplants.

  3. To build a digital twin of patients' brains, Atlas Pathfinder has adopted MONAI Label that can support radiologists by automatically annotating CT and MRI scans to segment normal tumors and structures.

Read the full feature about the potential applications of digital twins in healthcare and real-life use cases of the technology here. 

SNIPPETS
What else is making news

  • HonorHealth has started piloting virtual nursing to cover administrative tasks and help new nurses at a Phoenix hospital. This technology aimed at reducing some non healthcare duties for in-person nurses, has already received improved patient experience scores.

  • Federal antitrust agencies, Federal Trade Comission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday finalized stricter guidelines for mergers and acquisitions that could make it more difficult for healthcare deals to close.

  • Baptist Health installed I-PASS, a tech-focused system designed to help clinicians reduce medical errors. This involves adoption of the suite of digital health tools, which includes a handoff tool integrated within the EHR designed to reduce workflow redundancies.