Digital writing technology driving force behind creation of new wound dressing
Anoto and Longhand Data technology deployed in research into Epidermolysis Bullosa
Digital writing technology specialist, Anoto, and Longhand Data are working with researchers at King’s College London who are develop a new dressing for patients suffering from the genetic condition, Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB).
The King’s College research team behind the Woundcare for Epidermolysis Bullosa project has utilised Anoto’s digital writing technology along with the TELER measurement system from Longhand Data to provide up-to-date digital information from the patients.
EB is a condition that causes fragile skin, leading to open wounds that can cover the entire body. The King’s College research team worked with Skinnies, producer of soft, seamless skinwear, to produce a new type of dressing to better suit patient needs.
As part of the research project, the team also turned to Longhand Data to deploy a digital writing solution in combination with its TELER system to measure patient outcomes and the success of the dressings. Patients were given digital pens and bespoke digital paper forms to use at home to record their daily scores and levels of comfort. Upon docking the pen, the information was transmitted directly to the TELER portal for the research team to analyse and determine potential changes to treatment plans.
By empowering the patients to report their own progress from their homes allowed the research team to gather substantial amount of accurate information, as well as reduce the need for patients to attend clinics as monitoring was carried out electronically in near-real-time. The TELER forms were designed to suit each patient’s individual condition to accurately reflect their levels of comfort. Using the digital pens in their homes was a more cost-effective solution when compared to other technologies such as laptops and tablets and allowed for patients to use a technology they were familiar with.
“The aim of the Woundcare for Epidermolysis Bullosa project was to develop a dressing that would add a level of comfort to EB sufferers and a key area was recording the patient determined outcomes,” said Dr Patricia Grocott, reader in palliative care at King’s College.
“We knew that we couldn’t interfere with the day-to-day lives of patients and wanted them to have an unintrusive method to report their daily progress. By working together with Longhand Data, we were able to develop a system that was individual to each patient to ensure accuracy of data. The combination of Anoto’s digital writing technology and the TELER system was ideal for our specific needs. This now gives us a proven framework for future research projects where patient measured outcomes are key.”
Due to the success of the research project, the new dressing has been accepted on to the prescription tariff using evidence gathered by the digital writing technology.
The work carried out by the King’s College research team was recognised by The Guardian in its annual University Awards.
