Duke University Biomedical Prof Explains Why Wearable Infection Sensors Are Important

A simple wristband containing special sensors is able to pick up early infection from both the flu and the common cold before symptoms develop. It can also predict how severe illness will be once it becomes symptomatic, new research shows.

“Prior to the development of symptoms, people are still infectious and can potentially infect others,” Jessilyn Dunn, PhD, assistant professor of biomedical engineering at Duke University in Durham, NC, says.

“That’s why it’s so important to be able to detect infection even when a person doesn’t feel symptomatic — as this would help prevent the spread of pathogens that occurs before somebody knows they are sick and which is why it is important from a public health perspective,” she added.