In Chest ; h5-index 81.0
The association between breathing sounds with respiratory health or disease has been exceptionally useful in the practice of medicine since the advent of the stethoscope. TOPIC IMPORTANCE: Remote patient monitoring technology and artificial intelligence offer the potential to develop practical means of assessing respiratory function or dysfunction through continuous assessment of breathing sounds when patients are at home, work or even asleep. Automated reports e.g., cough counts or the percent of the breathing cycles containing wheezes can be delivered to a practitioner via secure electronic means or returned to the clinical office at the first opportunity. This has not previously been possible. The four respiratory sounds that most lend themselves to this technology are wheezes, to detect breakthrough asthma at night and even occupational asthma when a patient is at work; snoring as an indicator of obstructive sleep apnea or adequacy of CPAP settings; cough where long-term recording can objectively assess treatment adequacy, and crackles which, although subtle and often overlooked, can contain important clinical information when appearing in a home recording. REVIEW FINDINGS: In recent years, there have been a flurry of publications in the engineering literature describing construction, usage and testing outcomes of such devices. Little of this has appeared in the medical literature.
Kraman Steve S, Pasterkamp Hans, Wodicka George R
2023-Jan-24
