Researchers create wearable system to monitor stomach activity

A wearable, non-invasive device developed by researchers in the US could provide a new way for medical professionals to monitor electrical activity in the stomach over a 24-hour period.

Essentially an electrocardiogram but for the gastrointestinal tract, the system consists of a 3D-printed portable box connected to ten small electrodes that are attached to the outside of the body.

Initial tests involving 11 children and one adult volunteer showed that the stomach's electrical activity changes around meals but also during sleep, suggesting the organ follows its own circadian rhythm.

Early findings also indicated that data collected from the wearable system was comparable to insights gained from more invasive methods, such as inserting a catheter through the patient's nose.

Details of the research were published in Nature's open-access journal Scientific Reports.

Todd Coleman, the paper's corresponding author and professor of bioengineering at the University of California, San Diego, where the study was conducted, said: "Until now, it was quite challenging to accurately measure the electrical patterns of stomach activity in a continuous manner, outside of a clinical setting.

"From now on, we will be able to observe patterns and analyse them in both healthy and unwell people as they go about their daily lives."

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