Digital Biomarkers: Using Smartwatch Data For Clinically Relevant Outcomes

In the paradigm of remote patient monitoring, clinical significance, robustness and repeatability of measurements are key aspects. Such measurements using sensors or wearables, implantable or proxemics devices are often termed “Digital Biomarkers” as they are surrogate markers for patient's health condition. We have invested in creating digital biomarkers platform which connects patients & physicians by enabling remote monitoring and augmenting clinical reports and physical examination data with the insights derived from continuous monitoring of these parameters. In this paper, we present a case-study using the platform and a wrist-worn wearable with inertial, pressure and PPG sensor onboard the device which are used to estimate various fitness and physiological parameters. We also present a robust step detection algorithm with better detection accuracy than the proprietary app in indoor trajectories with multiple sharp turns. Our method is also shown to resist false step detections with better resilience while performing activities other than walking, and detect short spells of indoor walking with significantly better accuracy.