Activity Tracking Devices Research Articles

A CONTENT ANALYSIS OF WIRED MAGAZINE IN TERMS OF SELF-TRACKING DEVICES

In the digital era that we live in now it is possible to gather biological and biographical data of an individual by wearable digital health and activity-tracking devices. The phenomenon is known as self-tracking and it intends to expand individual’s self-knowledge and as a result to improve both the physical and psychological health. By self-tracking applications that digital health and activity-tracking devices provide now we can measure diverse biodata from heart rate, body fat percentage and pain levels to miles run, calories eaten and even to mood and happiness levels. The aim of this paper is the analysis of growing digitalized self-tracking trend through a content analysis of Wired magazine. This well-known design and technology magazine monthly publishes in print and online technology related articles on how emerging technologies affect culture, economy and politics and it reaches online more than 30 million people each month through wired.com, digital edition. This present study, carries out a content analysis of all the issues until December 2016 through the term 'self-tracking' and also two other closely related terms: 'quantified self' and 'lifelogging'. In the analysis, the usage period and popularity of these three terms; their relation network with the main topics and the sub-topics of the magazine are examined. By this analysis, the study presents the scope and relevance of the rising trend of self-tracking technologies from the birth of this trend.

A Physical Therapist–Administered Physical Activity Intervention After Total Knee Replacement: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial

The definitive treatment for knee osteoarthritis is a total knee replacement, which results in a clinically meaningful improvement in pain and physical function. However, evidence suggests that physical activity (PA) remains unchanged after total knee replacement (TKR). The objective of this study is to investigate the efficacy, fidelity, and safety of a physical therapist-administered PA intervention for people after TKR. This study will be a randomized controlled trial. The setting is an outpatient physical therapy clinic. The participants are 125 individuals who are over the age of 45 and are seeking outpatient physical therapy following a unilateral TKR. In addition to standardized physical therapy after TKR, the intervention group will receive, during physical therapy, a weekly PA intervention that includes a wearable activity tracking device, individualized step goals, and face-to-face feedback provided by a physical therapist. The control group will receive standardized physical therapy alone after TKR. The efficacy of the intervention will be measured as minutes per week spent in moderate to vigorous PA at enrollment, at discharge, and at 6 months and 12 months after discharge from physical therapy. The fidelity and safety of the intervention will be assessed throughout the study. Participants will not be masked, PA data will be collected after randomization, and the trial will be conducted at a single site. The goal of this randomized controlled trial is to increase PA after TKR. A protocol for investigating the efficacy, fidelity, and safety of a physical therapist-administered PA intervention for people after TKR is presented. The findings will be used to support a large multisite clinical trial to test the effectiveness, implementation, and cost of this intervention.

Determining the Validity and Accuracy of Multiple Activity-Tracking Devices in Controlled and Free-Walking Conditions.

Clinicians and fitness professionals are increasingly recommending the use of activity trackers. This study compares commercially available activity tracking devices for step and distance accuracy in common exercise settings. Cross sectional. Rochester, Minnesota. Thirty-two men (n = 10) and women (n = 22) participated in the study. Researchers manually counted steps and measured distance for all trials, while participants wore 6 activity tracking devices that measured steps and distance. We computed the difference between the number of steps measured by the device and the actual number of steps recorded by the observers, as well as the distance displayed by the device and the actual distance measured. The analyses showed that both the device and walking trials affected the accuracy of the results (steps or distance, P < .001). Hip-based devices were more accurate and consistent for measuring step count. No significant differences were found among devices or locations for the distance measured. Hip-based activity tracking devices varied in accuracy but performed better than their wrist-based counterparts for step accuracy. Distance measurements for both types of devices were more consistent but lacked accuracy.

ACTIVITY TRACKING DEVICES AS INNOVATIVE MONITORING STRATEGY AFTER PERCUTANEOUS REPAIR OF TRICUSPID AND MITRAL REGURGITATION

Interventional percutaneous repair of tricuspid and mitral regurgitation is an alternative to surgery in fragile patients. Since reliable methods documenting the procedural benefit are lacking, we assessed innovative monitoring strategies using activity tracking devices (ATDs). We analyzed 15

Activity trackers, prior motivation, and perceived informational and motivational affordances

A large number of activity-tracking devices have recently dominated the fitness world. These devices typically track different forms of activities and are argued to encourage more active lifestyles...

How to Keep Therapeutic Alliance Alive in the Age of EHRs

How to Keep Therapeutic Alliance Alive in the Age of EHRs

Social recommendations for personalized fitness assistance

Wearable technology allows users to monitor their activity and pursue a healthy lifestyle through the use of embedded sensors. Such wearables usually connect to a mobile application that allows them to set their profile and keep track of their goals. However, due to the relatively high maintenance of such applications, where a significant amount of user feedback is expected, users who are very busy, or not as self-motivated, stop using them after a while. It has been shown that accountability improves commitment to an exercise routine. In this work, we present the PRO-Fit framework, a personalized fitness assistant aiming at engaging users in fitness activities, incorporating a social element. The PRO-Fit architecture collects information from activity tracking devices and automatically classifies their activity type. Moreover, the framework incorporates a social recommender system. Using collaborative filtering on user profile and activity data, PRO-Fit generates personalized fitness schedules based on their availability and wellbeing goals. We also incorporate the social network community of the application's users and identify different tie strengths based on the user's connections and location. The output of the recommendation process is twofold, as both new activities, as well as fitness buddies, are being recommended to each user.

Determining the Validity and Accuracy of Multiple Activity Tracking Devices in Controlled and Free-Walking Conditions

Determining the Validity and Accuracy of Multiple Activity Tracking Devices in Controlled and Free-Walking Conditions

Weight loss in Weight Watchers Online with and without an activity tracking device compared to control: A randomized trial.

To evaluate a commercial online weight loss program and activity tracker, which are popular but have unknown efficacy. Two hundred seventy-nine participants with BMI 27 to 40 kg/m2 were randomized to 12 months of the Weight Watchers Online program alone (WWO) or with the ActiveLink® activity tracking device (WWO+AL) or an online newsletter (Control). Weight losses at 3 months were significantly greater in WWO (2.7 kg [95% confidence interval (CI), 2.0-3.5 kg] than Control (1.3 kg [95% CI, 0.5-2.0 kg]; P = 0.01); neither differed from WWO+AL (2.0 kg [95% CI, 1.3-2.7 kg]; Ps > 0.56). Significantly more WWO participants (24.5%) achieved ≥ 5% weight loss at 3 months than Control (9.4%) (P = 0.01); neither differed from WWO+AL (17.6%) (Ps = 0.13-0.28). At 12 months, there were no significant differences between groups in weight loss (Ps > 0.52). WWO (25.5%) continued to have a higher proportion of participants achieving ≥ 5% weight loss than Control (12.9%) (P = 0.04); neither differed from WWO+AL (14.3%) (Ps > 0.10). There were no significant between-group differences in change in physical activity (Ps > 0.17). WWO produced significantly more weight loss at 3 months relative to Control, but not at 12 months. Significantly more WWO than Control participants lost ≥ 5% at both 3 and 12 months. Participants receiving an activity tracking device did not achieve greater weight loss or physical activity increases than those in a Control condition.

Activity-tracking devices for older adults: comparison and preferences

Research demonstrates that physical activity beneficially influences brain function, quality of life and reduces cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, many projects and technical developments aim to promote physical activity. As a result of the “quantified self”-movement, a great number of wearable technologies, which are mainly developed for a younger target group, emerged on the market. However, there is a lack of scientific studies to establish which systems are suitable for older adults and there is still little known about seniors’ needs and preferences regarding fitness trackers. In this crossover-designed usability study, 20 older adults aged over 60 took part. In the study, all participants were requested to rate the usability of five of the most widely used fitness trackers (Nike FuelBand, Jawbone Up, Fitbit Flex, Garmin vivofit, Sony SmartBand) and were asked about their preferences. Participants had to rate its ergonomic features such as handling, material and design. Overall, the fitness trackers differ a lot in tracking features, design, usability and acceptance of the seniors. We present an aggregated list of requirements for the “ideal” activity tracker for older adults. The results seem to be of high interest for developers, but also for scientists to choose appropriate sensors for technology-based interventions that may promote physical activity.

Harnessing the Potential of Wearable Activity Trackers for Heart Failure Self-Care.

The purpose of this study was to explore the potential of wearable activity trackers to promote self-care management for physical activity in heart failure (HF). Exercise participation decreases hospital admissions and improves quality of life in HF, and activity tracking devices provide more precise means to assess free-living physical activity and thus enable tailored exercise instruction. Use of activity trackers by cardiac patients for self-monitoring and motivational purposes is associated with increased levels of physical activity and is predictive of disease severity. However, more research is required to establish the feasibility and validity of these devices in HF patients. It is also critical that the devices can be easily used to collect, process and utilise relevant data. Activity trackers have the potential to promote HF self-care because they provide monitoring of physical activity behaviours and the potential to generate habit formation and goal reinforcement, all of which foster physical activity.

Recruiting Adolescent Research Participants: In-Person Compared to Social Media Approaches.

Recruiting adolescent participants for research is challenging. The purpose of this study was to compare traditional in-person recruitment methods to social media recruitment. We recruited adolescents aged 14-18 years for a pilot physical activity intervention study, including a wearable physical activity tracking device and a Facebook group. Participants were recruited (a) in person from a local high school and an adolescent medicine clinic and (b) through social media, including Facebook targeted ads, sponsored tweets on Twitter, and a blog post. Data collected included total exposure (i.e., reach), engagement (i.e., interaction), and effectiveness. Effectiveness included screening and enrollment for each recruitment method, as well as time and resources spent on each recruitment method. In-person recruitment reached a total of 297 potential participants of which 37 enrolled in the study. Social media recruitment reached a total of 34,272 potential participants of which 8 enrolled in the study. Social media recruitment methods utilized an average of 1.6 hours of staff time and cost an average of $40.99 per participant enrolled, while in-person recruitment methods utilized an average of 0.75 hours of staff time and cost an average of $19.09 per participant enrolled. Social media recruitment reached more potential participants, but the cost per participant enrolled was higher compared to traditional methods. Studies need to consider benefits and downsides of traditional and social media recruitment methods based on study goals and population.

Self-tracking in the Digital Era

This article employs Foucauldian and feminist analytics to advance a critical approach to wearable digital health- and activity-tracking devices. Following Foucault’s insight that the growth of individual capabilities coincides with the intensification of power relations, I argue that digital self-tracking devices (DSTDs) expand individuals’ capacity for self-knowledge and self-care at the same time that they facilitate unprecedented levels of biometric surveillance, extend the regulatory mechanisms of both public health and fashion/beauty authorities, and enable increasingly rigorous body projects devoted to the attainment of normative femininity. These technologies of surveillance, normalization, and discipline thus function to augment, and facilitate the cooperation of, neoliberal-era biopower and post-feminist patriarchal power. My analysis of digital self-tracking devices’ instrumentality to biopower and patriarchy contributes to the emergent field of critical digital health studies and builds new connections between political, social, and feminist theories of embodiment; biopower studies; fat studies; and trans-disciplinary body studies.

Behavioral activation group therapy for reducing depressive symptoms and improving quality of life: a feasibility study.

BackgroundDepression is associated with a loss of productivity and noticeable personal, social, and economic decline; it affects more than 350 million people worldwide. Behavioral activation (BA), derived from cognitive behavioral therapy, has drawn increasingly more interest as a means of treatment for major depressive disorder due to its relative cost-effectiveness and efficacy. In this study, we disseminate findings from a feasibility study evaluating barriers to implementing a group BA program for major depressive disorder. The purpose of this feasibility study is to assess both patient and clinician perceptions on components of a group-based behavioral activation (BA) program. In particular, this feasibility study provides in-depth evaluation of the acceptability of BA prior to the design and implementation of a randomized trial to investigate BA effectiveness. Findings from this study directly informed decisions regarding the design and implementation of BA during the pilot trial. Specific components of BA were assessed and modified based on the results of this study.MethodsThis qualitative study was completed through the Mood Disorders Program at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton. The authors of this study used data from two focus group sessions, one consisting of an interdisciplinary group of clinicians working in the Mood Disorders Program, and the other of registered outpatients of the Mood Disorders Program with a confirmed clinical diagnosis of depression. The benefits of offering this program in a group format, mainly social skill development opportunities and the use of technology such as activity tracking device, smart phones, and tablets during the therapy sessions, are a major focus of both the clinician and patient groups. Both groups emphasized the importance of offering sustainable activation.ResultsDifferences in opinions existed between staff and patient groups regarding the use of technology in the program, though ultimately it was agreed upon that technology could be useful as a therapeutic aid. All participants agreed that behavioral activation was essential to the development of positive habits and routines necessary for recovery from depression. Patients agreed the program looked sustainable and stressed the potential benefit for improving depressive symptoms.ConclusionsDiscussions from clinician and patient-centered focus groups directly informed decisions regarding the design and implementation of BA during the pilot trial. Specific components of BA were assessed and modified based on the results of this study. These findings provide insight for clinicians providing behavioral activation programming, and will serve as a framework for the development of the Out of the Blues program, a group-based BA program to be piloted in the Mood Disorders Program at St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton.Trial registrationClinical Trials registration number NCT02045771

Abstract P134: One Year Follow-up of the mActive Randomized Clinical mHealth Trial of Physical Activity

Background: Novel mobile health (mHealth) technologies have transformed behavioral change research. Leveraging digital activity tracking technology, the mActive randomized clinical mHealth trial of cardiology patients showed that automated text message coaching increased short-term physical activity by 25%. In this one-year follow-up study, we aimed to understand the post-trial behavior of participants and examine their long-term perspectives. Methods: After trial completion, participants retained their digital activity tracking device (Fitbug) and their ongoing behavior was no longer directed by the research team. At one year, 34 of 48 participants answered a Google survey with questions about ongoing activity tracking usage and preferences regarding activity tracking devices and text messages. A proportion for each response was calculated. During focus groups (n=18), open questions were asked to promote discussion with themes assessed in a qualitative analysis. Results: On the survey (Table), 50% (17 of 34) reported still having the mActive pedometer and 27% continued activity tracking after the trial. Among those no longer tracking activity, 71% reported wanting to resume doing so; there was not a strong preference towards any particular activity tracking device. Preferences regarding text feedback were varied with most preferring 1-2 messages per day with a mix of positive and negative messages. During focus groups, participants emphasized a desire for feedback through personalized real-time text messages, and also expressed interest in having activity data synchronize with their electronic medical record to review it with their physician. Conclusions: After the trial, 1/3 of mActive participants continued to track activity. Integration of activity data with the electronic medical record and long-term delivery of real-time feedback could increase the desirability of long-term activity tracking. Future studies may address whether these capabilities aid in long-term engagement and behavioral change.

Patient-centered activity monitoring in the self-management of chronic health conditions.

BackgroundAs activity tracking devices become smaller, cheaper, and more consumer-accessible, they will be used more extensively across a wide variety of contexts. The expansion of activity tracking and personal data collection offers the potential for patient engagement in the management of chronic diseases. Consumer wearable devices for activity tracking have shown promise in post-surgery recovery in cardiac patients, pulmonary rehabilitation, and activity counseling in diabetic patients, among others. Unfortunately, the data generated by wearable devices is seldom integrated into programmatic self-management chronic disease regimens. In addition, there is lack of evidence supporting sustained use or effects on health outcomes, as studies have primarily focused on establishing the feasibility of monitoring activity and the association of measured activity with short-term benefits.DiscussionMonitoring devices can make a direct and real-time impact on self-management, but the validity and reliability of measurements need to be established. In order for patients to become engaged in wearable data gathering, key patient-centered issues relating to usefulness in care, motivation, the safety and privacy of information, and clinical integration need to be addressed. Because the successful usage of wearables requires an ability to comprehend and utilize personal health data, the user experience should account for individual differences in numeracy skills and apply evidence-based behavioral science principles to promote continued engagement.SummaryActivity monitoring has the potential to engage patients as advocates in their personalized care, as well as offer health care providers real world assessments of their patients’ daily activity patterns. This potential will be realized as the voice of the chronic disease patients is accounted for in the design of devices, measurements are validated against existing clinical assessments, devices become part of the treatment ‘prescription’, behavior change programs are used to engage patients in self-management, and best practices for clinical integration are defined.

Technology and physical activity motivation

Technological devices have evolved into a popular social trend becoming a part of many people's daily life. As a result, technology devices are becoming more commonly used for different tasks and activities. The current study examined if wearing a Nike Fuelband (FB) SE increased physical activity (PA) motivation for an adult population. The research design included an 8-week, pre-/post-test intervention. The inclusion of the FB SE served as the research intervention. Participants (n = 42) included two convenient samples located in Colorado and Nebraska. Prior to study investigation, participants were trained how to use all the functions of the device, associated Nike+ Connect program, and given additional resources for reference. Participants completed the Exercise Motivation Inventory-2 before device training and post 8 weeks. Pre- and post-data were analysed using a paired t-test. The current study reports that significant differences were present among the measured constructs of affiliation, enjoyment, challenge, and positive health motivation. Participants who used the FB reported a significant increase in the motivation constructs of affiliation, enjoyment, challenge, and positive health motivation over an 8-week intervention. This study suggests that electronic activity-tracking devices can be valuable tools for behaviour change, aiding efforts to increase adult PA levels and decrease trends of obesity.

Meeting PETE Students in Their World: Tracking Physical Activity through Technology

Considering that physical education teacher candidates use technology as a part of their everyday life, perhaps physical education teacher education professionals should engage candidates through the use of such technology in ways that are pedagogically sound. One piece of technology that could be considered a reasonable place to start is an activity-tracking device.

Hand, belt, pocket or bag: Practical activity tracking with mobile phones

For rehabilitation and diagnoses, an understanding of patient activities and movements is important. Modern smartphones have built in accelerometers which promise to enable quantifying minute-by-minute what patients do (e.g. walk or sit). Such a capability could inform recommendations of physical activities and improve medical diagnostics. However, a major problem is that during everyday life, we carry our phone in different ways, e.g. on our belt, in our pocket, in our hand, or in a bag. The recorded accelerations are not only affected by our activities but also by the phone's location. Here we develop a method to solve this kind of problem, based on the intuition that activities change rarely, and phone locations change even less often. A hidden Markov model (HMM) tracks changes across both activities and locations, enabled by a static support vector machine (SVM) classifier that probabilistically identifies activity-location pairs. We find that this approach improves tracking accuracy on healthy subjects as compared to a static classifier alone. The obtained method can be readily applied to patient populations. Our research enables the use of phones as activity tracking devices, without the need of previous approaches to instruct subjects to always carry the phone in the same location.

WE-G-WAB-01: Real-Time Catheter Tracking and Visualization in MR-Guided Brachytherapy

Purpose: The challenge of catheter-tip visualization for interstitial needle placement in gynecologic brachytherapy remains unmet. We evaluate an approach to actively track tip locations and visualize catheter trajectories and surrounding soft-tissue in real-time during an intervention. The methods include development of clinical needles with magnetic resonance (MR) tracked microcoils, an MR tracking and rapid imaging sequence and integration with a graphical workstation for visualization. Methods: An active tracking device was built based on a commercial catheter which consists of a hollow tube and a central needle with microcoils at the distal end. An MR tracking sequence was developed (isotropic resolution: 0.6 mm, frame rate: 40 updates/sec). It runs continuously during navigation or interleaves with real-time imaging (3 frames/sec), where image position/orientation are automatically set to provide visualization of anatomy around the catheter. The catheter-tip position/orientation was passed to the workstation for visualization. Needle shapes were superimposed on pre-acquired high-resolution images or on the intra-procedural images. Results: MR-guided catheter placement procedures were conducted in a gel phantom and an animal model. High-resolution 3D MR scans were acquired and loaded into the workstation for navigation. During insertion, the catheter tips were visualized advancing on a 3D anatomic model and on assigned planes. Real-time imaging with slice continuously updating at the instantaneous tip positions was also performed. Both methods served well to guide catheter placement. After insertion, complete catheter trajectories were rendered by recording tip positions as needles were pulled out and overlaid on the images, to support treatment planning. Conclusion: We demonstrated the feasibility of active catheter tracking and visualization in MR-guided brachytherapy. This will facilitate accurate and time-efficient catheter insertion by providing on-line identification of catheter position, and visualization of anatomy ahead of the catheter tip. This enables identifying preferential paths to target locations, and reduces the risk to critical organs. Funding sources: NIH P41 EB015898; AHA 10SDG261039