Mobile Medical Device Technology on Display on NBC

Brian Buntz

January 30, 2013

2 Min Read
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Famed cardiologist Eric Topol, MD demonstrated an array of digital health technologies in a segment titled "iDoctor" on NBC's Rock Center with Brian Williams. In the segment, a number of mobile medical devices were on display (also pictured below), ranging from AliveCor's iPhone ECG to a smartphone-compatible continuous glucose monitor from Dexcom. In the clip, Topol explained how such technologies are fueling the future of healthcare by enabling better monitoring of health metrics. "The new medicine is plugged into you," he said. "It is understanding you, which we've never really done before."

The accuracy of the AliveCor's FDA-cleared iPhone ECG has been validated in clinical trials. The device has two metal electrodes (shown above right) that detect physiological signals from the user's skin and converts them into an ultrasonic signal detected by the phone's microphone.


The GE Vscan was featured in TIME magazine as one of the 50 best inventions of the year in 2009. The pocket-sized device packs real-time ultrasound display functionality into a unit that is roughly the size as a smart phone. The Vscan is powered by a 7.4 V lithium-polymer battery.


Dexcom's glucose monitoring technology was also on display in the NBC clip. Shown here is the company's G4 CGM. The company's sensor technology can communicate with a number of insulin pumps.


The ViSi Mobile medical device from Sotera Wireless enables wireless, body-worn vital sign monitoring of metrics such as blood pressure, SPO2, ECG, heart rate, and temperature. The schematic for the technology below was drawn from U.S. patent 8180440, which was granted to Sotera in 2012.  

Brian Buntz is the editor-in-chief of MPMN. Follow him on Twitter at @brian_buntz.

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