Applying translational medicine by Using the WELCOME Remote Monitoring System on Patients with COPD and Comorbidities

The WELCOME system was an innovative telemonitoring solution for management of COPD patients with major comorbidities. It consisted of a sensors-vest capable of recording numerous vital parameters in real time and transmitting them to the cloud via wireless connection. In addition, peripheral devices recorded extra physiological data coupled with responses to validated health questionnaires that the patients responded to via a tablet. A dedicated medical Decision Support System (DSS) and a medical doctor user interface supported the system in providing automated detection of abnormalities/ disease deteriorations. The obtained signals included Heart and Respiratory Rate, Body Posture, SpO
₂
, multi-lead ECG, Auscultation and Electric Impedance Tomography. The system was tested with pilot studies in Greece and UK. Results from the Greek pilot study are presented in this paper, highlighting the route from data collection to applied translational medicine through the first operational use of the WELCOME infrastructure.