Telemedicine

What is it?

Telemedicine solutions enable deployment of monitoring and intervention platforms in the homes of study subjects or patients, and the repeated collection of data or multi-session therapy in a safe, controlled and easy-to-use manner.

Why is it useful?

While laboratory or clinical settings offer great advantages for basic and clinical research as well as clinical practice, they also present logistical challenges, especially if subjects need to visit the study site from distant locations or have difficulties traveling. The prospects for therapeutical solutions that require multiple sessions, such as with tES, require innovative approaches that can reduce the burden on patients, as well as study or treatment costs.

Technology

Telemedicine should be safe, easy to use and robust, and allow for easy communication between the subject and researcher, or patient and physician. The combination of EEG and brain stimulation (tES) in home settings can be used to follow the evolution of treatment, for example, and to adjust dosing. Wireless, easy-to-use solutions are ideal for home-therapy settings.

Synergies

Home solutions can leverage many of the same synergies available in clinical or research settings. For example, the combination of EEG and tES can also be deployed in home settings, as well as with the administration of questionnaires (adverse effect monitoring, sham/placebo questionnaires, etc) or cognitive tests.

Applications

The uses of telemedicine include research with EEG and tES (e.g., when there is a need to carry out long term interventions studies with tDCS or tACS) as well as clinically oriented monitoring (EEG in epilepsy, for example) and treatment.