A start-up from the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) has developed a new sensor designed to make patient monitoring simpler, smarter and more effective. The next step is to commercialise the technology and expand beyond Denmark.
Six years ago, three former DTU students came up with the idea for an intelligent patch equipped with a wireless sensor that can quickly provide a picture of a patient’s condition and enhance patient safety.
Today, the medtech company IMP Scandinavia has secured medical approval for the intelligent patch in just ten months—a major commercial milestone that opens the door to the European market.
The intelligent patch has been developed in a Danish healthcare system under pressure from more and older patients, a lack of healthcare professionals, and large-scale hospitals with single rooms. It is based on a wireless medical sensor that continuously measures heart rate, oxygen saturation, blood pressure, respiration, and movement, and can strengthen patient safety, free up staff time, and support both hospital and home monitoring.
We are looking at a future where many patient groups will be sent home for hospital-at-home care. So instead of having the doctor measure their blood pressure, many patients will be doing it themselves and then sending the results to the doctor or hospital. Here, the patient’s condition will be monitored, and it will be assessed whether further treatment is needed. In this way, diseases can be detected early and hospitalization avoided. This can lead to major socio-economic gains
Brian Christensen, co-founder of the company.
Brian Christensen met fellow co-founders Jeppe Damgaard Leth and Oliver Kjæp Karlsson on a business innovation course at DTU Ballerup Campus, where students learn to develop technologies aimed at addressing some of society’s challenges.
The entrepreneurs have participated in several accelerator programmes such as the Danish Tech Challenge, which is a competition for high-tech start-ups focusing on IT hardware. They have also been part of the Copenhagen Health Innovation partnership, which aims to create a better healthcare system for the benefit of patients, and conducted research projects carried out in the everyday lives of citizens and patients.
The entrepreneurs themselves develop the software for the patch. The readings are transmitted via wireless beacons, which are little radio transmitters, to a laptop or tablet. From here you can follow the development over time. The sensor holds enough power for approx. 24 hours, is sustainable, and can be removed from the patch and recycled.
Photo: Magnus Møller
