Mobile app used to monitor Ménière's Disease
By self-monitoring their symptoms on a daily basis with a mobile app, patients suffering from Ménière's disease can provide researchers with useful information about their illness.
The U.K. research team behind the development of this app hope to be able to understand what factors influence the symptoms of Ménière's disease. By gathering and comparing data from patients across the U.K., the team hope to discover if patients experience similar symptoms at the same time.
Furthermore, the data from the app might help them to understand how environmental factors, such as air pressure and humidity, have an impact on the symptoms.
Ménière's disease
Ménière's disease is a disorder in the inner ear which can lead to tinnitus, hearing loss, vertigo, and feeling of pressure deep within the ear. Why people develop the condition and how the symptoms occur remains unclear.
However, according to Natasha Harrington-Benton, Director of the Ménière's Society in U.K., the mobile app could be an opportunity for patients to control the symptoms of their disease:
“This new mobile app will be a really useful tool to help members monitor their condition, providing information that could help them manage their symptoms.”
About the study
The study was carried out by researchers from at the University of Exeter Medical School’s European Center for Environment & Human Health.
The mobile application was designed and developed in collaboration with a private digital company.
Source: www.exeter.ac.uk