Graduate Institute of Biomedical Informatics, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan; International Center for Health Information Technology, Taipei Medical University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Department of General Surgery, Shin Kong Wu Ho-Su Memorial Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan.
Comput Methods Programs Biomed. 2018 Jan;153:137-159. doi: 10.1016/j.cmpb.2017.10.008. Epub 2017 Oct 14.
Elderly populations are more prone to diseases and need continuous monitoring of parameters to ensure good health. Wearable devices (WDs) can be helpful in the early detection and management of medical conditions. However, less is known about the use of currently available WDs among elderly populations. The objectives of this study were to determine the usefulness and actual use of wearable devices among the elderly population.
Our methodology was based on a systematic review and a survey questionnaire. In the systematic review, search was conducted in four databases PubMed, MDPI, Sage, and Scopus with search terms "wearable device" and "elderly", "wearable sensor" and "elderly". The inclusion criteria were the studies which described health-related wearable devices, its use as the outcome, conducted on a minimum of ten participants and published in the last five years. The survey was conducted on the MOOCs (Massive Open Online Course) platform. The questionnaire was related to the use of technology, intention to use, security and privacy concerns, and willingness to pay.
The review identified 4915 articles, of which, 31 studies eventually met the inclusion criteria. All studies reported positive impacts after assessing devices, despite certain drawbacks. The majority of the samples were males. The survey revealed responses from 233 individuals out of the 1100 participants of the course. The survey results were categorized into two age groups: 54.3% were elderly (>65 years) and 45.49% were non-elderly (≤65 years). Very few elderly people were currently using WD. More than 60% of elderly people were interested in the future use of wearable devices, and preferred future use to improve physical and mental activities. A majority of the respondents were female.
This study suggests awareness should be created among elderly populations regarding the use of WDs for the early detection and prevention of complications and emergencies. Elderly populations are more prone to benefits from using WDs. The review concluded that devices should be tested on elderly groups as well, considering sex equality, and on both healthy and sick participants for better insights. The survey determined the elderly as frequent users of technology, but lack of knowledge of WD and demonstrated female interest in the use of WD. In future research on WDs, it is suggested that clinical studies be conducted for longer durations, and standard protocols such as age and sex equality should be considered. Requirements from both users and physicians should be acknowledged for better cognizance of WDs.
老年人更容易患病，需要持续监测参数以确保身体健康。可穿戴设备（WDs）可帮助早期发现和管理医疗状况。然而，目前对于老年人使用 WDs 的情况了解甚少。本研究的目的是确定老年人对 WDs 的实用性和实际使用情况。
我们的方法基于系统评价和问卷调查。在系统评价中，在 PubMed、MDPI、Sage 和 Scopus 四个数据库中使用“可穿戴设备”和“老年人”、“可穿戴传感器”和“老年人”等术语进行搜索。纳入标准为描述与健康相关的可穿戴设备及其作为结果使用的研究，至少有 10 名参与者且发表在过去五年内。问卷调查是在 MOOCs（大规模开放在线课程）平台上进行的。问卷涉及技术使用、使用意愿、安全和隐私问题以及支付意愿。
综述共检索到 4915 篇文章，其中 31 项研究最终符合纳入标准。所有研究在评估设备后均报告了积极影响，尽管存在一些缺点。大多数样本为男性。该调查从课程的 1100 名参与者中获得了 233 人的回复。调查结果分为两个年龄组：54.3%为老年人（>65 岁），45.49%为非老年人（≤65 岁）。很少有老年人正在使用 WDs。超过 60%的老年人对未来使用可穿戴设备感兴趣，并希望通过使用可穿戴设备改善身心健康活动。大多数受访者为女性。
本研究表明，应向老年人宣传 WDs 的使用，以实现早期发现和预防并发症和紧急情况。老年人更倾向于从使用 WDs 中受益。综述得出的结论是，应在老年人中测试设备，考虑性别平等，并在健康和患病参与者中测试设备，以获得更好的见解。调查确定老年人是技术的高频使用者，但缺乏对 WDs 的了解，并表现出女性对使用 WDs 的兴趣。未来的 WDs 研究建议进行更长时间的临床试验，并考虑年龄和性别平等的标准协议。应认可用户和医生的需求，以更好地了解 WDs。
