Bio-signal Telemonitoring Using Electronic Textiles in a Pediatric Population

There is a need for developing reliable and convenient technologies for telemonitoring of physiological signals such as respiration, cardiac function, and activity level in children and especially for those with heart disease. Changing symptomatology causes heart failure patients to seek medical attention in order to be assessed and potentially have medication adjusted or additional testing being undertaken. These frequent clinical encounters affect the quality of life of these children and their parents, as well as being costly for the health care system. A textile based technology for telemonitoring application that is comfortable and accurate in its data collection can help to provide real time information on physiologic parameters. The primary research objective is to determine the feasibility and validity of a textile-enabled sensor system in measuring physiologic variables, or "biological signals", related to cardiopulmonary function in children. The study will include 10 patients with heart failure, and 10 healthy controls.