Apple's Top-Secret Project!
Hi, WA Friends
Although I don't usually write about biomedical engineering technology at WA, I thought many of you would be interested in Apple's top-secret project, which is rumored to incorporate artificial intelligence.
What Is It?
The project centers around the development of non-invasive technology, which would accurately monitor someone's blood sugar level without pricking their skin or drawing a venous sample.
I worked on a similar project when I was earning my Master's degree in biomedical engineering back in the late 1970s. We received a grant to study the non-invasive measurement of calcium deposition in the skin of chronic diabetics.
Here is a quote from Becker's Hospital Review, based on a story that initially ran as an article on Bloomberg.
"Apple is close to perfecting a device that would monitor people's glucose levels without pricking the skin for blood, Bloomberg reported Feb. 22.
The secret project started in 2010 after Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, then dealing with his own health problems, directed the company to purchase a startup focused on noninvasive blood glucose monitoring, according to the Feb. 22 story. Employees used to work as part of a company with a different name and badges, 12 miles from Apple's main campus.
Hundreds of engineers in Apple's previously unreported Exploratory Design Group, or XDG, are developing a prototype device that would be the size of an iPhone and attach to a person's bicep, people familiar with the matter told the news outlet. The ultimate goal would be to incorporate the technology into the Apple Watch.
As Bloomberg noted, the device, while still years away, would "upend a multibillion-dollar industry" and "cement Apple as a powerhouse in healthcare." Still, other companies have tried similar projects, such as Google's blood glucose-detecting smart contact lenses β and failed."
How Does It Work?
The blood sugar device uses laser-guided optical spectroscopy and silicon photonics to take a colorimetric reading of the skin as a function of sugar concentration.
For those wondering, this is different than the continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems that are currently available, like the "Freestyle Libre." These systems have a patch that sticks to your arm and uses a small needle that pierces the skin, so itβs invasive. The needle allows the insertion of a "sensor filament" that is about 0.4 mm in diameter and is inserted 5 mm under the surface of the skin.
What Else Is Apple Health Working On?
So, a friend that works as a software engineer at Apple told me that in addition to the blood sugar monitor, which supposedly will incorporate AI, Apple is also working on a blood pressure monitor for their Apple Watch.
Although the blood sugar monitor will probably be integrated into the Apple Watch within the next five to ten years, the blood pressure monitor may be available as soon as 2024 or 2025.
This will allow Apple Watch users to check their heart rate, respirations, blood pressure, and a lead 3 cardiac rhythm strip.
That's all I know at this point, but I will keep you all informed.
Rock On! π€
ο»ΏFrank πΈ
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Recent Comments
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Thank you, Frank. I always find your news on technical matters useful and interesting. Thankfully, I don't need to prick my finger, because that's the worse. And I was wondering what Apple's secret project was. Medicine seems out of their niche. I thought it was going to be something more like Meta's camera glasses. Nice talking to you.
Thanks, Donna
Apple and Google are actually pretty heavily invested in the health space.
Apple is more geared toward tech while Google has collected an amazing amount of predictive search and email data, which they claim is anonymous. π
Frank πΈ
I used Apple Watch for my tachycardia for a while because I had A-Fib twice, and the watch helped. I saved my life twice. I got the ablation for it. But they changed the dx from A-Fib to ISTβInappropriate Sinus Tachycardia. After my second ablation, I have been having tachycardia problems. They said it's just IST and nothing to be concerned about. It will go very fast for no reason. I used to take Dilitzem 60 mg if it goes over 130 beats per min. I don't take it anymore. It causes migraines.
Now they have this for glucose; that is cool. I like how they are trying to find new ways for us to monitor our health rather than ignoring the symptoms.
I no longer use my Apple Watch for checking hr because it makes me more paranoid and anxious, so It's best I do not know about it.
They told me it's not POTS. Its IST.
I had three different electrophysiologists tell me three other dx, A-Fib, IST, and POTS, now which is it? None of them agreed with each other, so I gave up and gave them the middle finger, and told them to take a hike.
I will learn to live with it on my own. I have been doing just fine without those 3 egoistical electrophysiologist.
Sorry you had to go through all that, Brenda. I suggest you keep in touch with your primary care physician.
Stay Well! π
Frank πΈ
Noninvasive is good but can anyone really trust any large corporation? Iβm waiting for the Startrec like scan that heals everything with frequency rather than making money on people suffering. And Iβm hoping it comes from a small non-corporate group. Maybe not in my lifetime but itβs out there somewhere.
Very interesting Frank, but things could get a little too invasive here for my liking!
Enjoy a fabulous start to your Frisatsu my friend and of course keep on Rockin' !!
ππΈπΈ
Haha. Even though the tech will be "non-invasive," there's always a price to pay for everything, Nick! π
Have a Rocking weekend! π€
Frank πΈ
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Hey, Frank, That's cool. They already have a couple of cool features. I can track my O2 saturation Which I think is pretty close to accurate.
I check mine on my watch when I am not with my oximeter, and it seems to be close, like a 5% difference on the high side.
It also tracks ECG but tells you it does not check for heart attacks. Even still, these are neat features.
I wish I could check The Co2 levels; that would be handy to monitor myself when I forget to put on my bi-pap at night.
FORGET right?
I try not to let that get out of control. Checking through the wrist is very painful.
My friend, that has had diabetes for years, never could keep it under control until he got the pump.
It is incredible how technology has become that they can fit all this in a small device like a watch or like pump the size of a small beeper.
Thanks for the interesting information.
Chet
Hey, Chet
Yes, I agree that the Apple Watch oximeter is pretty accurate. The rhythm strip is designed to detect atrial fibrillation, but as a physician, I can get much more information from it.
Severe "brittle" diabetics can be good candidates for an insulin pump. I published one of the first papers on hybrid artificial pancreas back when I was studying biomedical engineering in the late 1970s.
Yes, arterial blood gas measurement can be painful. You need to wear your CPAP machine every night to properly treat your obstructive sleep apnea! π
Rock On! π€
Frank πΈ
Hey Frank, there are several lessons I have learned my doctor prescribed for my emergency meds,
Doxycycline and Prednisone. If I even feel like I am getting sick, start taking it. Then I think I will get over this; not that ill yet.
Wrong. Always listen to your doctor. Little did I know I had the new flu going around; It Put me in the hospital for all of October.
COPD is an awful disease. I have been with it for 12 years now.
Chet
Hi, Chet
Sorry to hear that.
Yes, always listen to your doctor. Cigarette smoking has caused more lung and heart problems than you can imagine.
Stay Well! π
Frank πΈ
Hey Frank, I tried to keep smoking and ended up in the hospital twice or three times a year. I figured I had it just as well. Keep smoking.
WRONG!
Since finally getting smart and quitting five years ago, I haven't been in until this flu broke my stride.
Have a great weekend.
Chet
That's a great accomplishment, Chet! ππ
Enjoy Your Weekend, Too! π
Frank πΈ