Abstract
Health-related information is increasingly being collected and stored digitally. These data, either structured or unstructured, are becoming the ubiquitous assets that might enable us to comprehensively map out a patient’s health journey from an asymptomatic state of wellness to disease onset and its trajectory. These new data could provide rich real-world evidence for better clinical care and research, if they can be accessed, linked and analyzed—all of which are possible. In this review, these opportunities will be explored through a case vignette of a patient with OA, followed by discussion on how this digitalized real-world evidence could best be utilized, as well as the challenges of data access, quality and maintaining public trust.
Highlights
The increased uptake of technology is changing our ability to observe and understand the onset, progression and outcome of disease in society
As we live our daily lives, vast amounts of information pertaining to our health and well-being are being recorded, including contact with health care systems
There is a paucity of evidence about some less readily available risk factors, such as physical activity, diet, other lifestyle factors and health-seeking behavioral, in influencing the development and progression of knee OA
Summary
The increased uptake of technology is changing our ability to observe and understand the onset, progression and outcome of disease in society. We will examine how a patient may seek help, information, support, guidance and treatment through this journey, with an eye on what digital data are captured. These longitudinal types of digital data can provide real-time tracking of symptom trajectory and disease progression and outcome.
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