Smart pants for stroke and heart attack checks
So-called “smart” high-tech underpants could save men from strokes and heart attacks by monitoring the blood pressure through waistband sensors that detect the speed of blood flow through the arteries.
The smart pants – now being developed in Europe by technology giant Philips – are part of a four year project aimed at incorporating health monitoring systems into clothes, bedding, and home appliances to combat high blood pressure, which contributes to cardiovascular disease and kills nearly 50,000 Australians a year.
A recent National Stroke Foundation screening project found that 46% of 4,000 people tested had dangerously high blood pressure, but that half of those did not know their blood pressure level.
The foundation’s chief executive officer, Dr Erin Lalor, said “we often call it the silent killer because there are no symptoms of high blood pressure, and the only way to know that you have it is to have it checked”.
