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Called Baseline Study, Google's project will gather anonymous genetic and molecular information to create a full picture of what a healthy human is.

 

The early-stage project is run by Andrew Conrad, a 50-year-old molecular biologist who pioneered cheap, high-volume tests for HIV in blood-plasma donations.

 

Dr. Conrad joined Google X—thecompany's research arm—in March 2013, and he has built a team of about 70-to-100 experts from fields including physiology, biochemistry, optics, imaging and molecular biology.

Other mass medical and genomics studies exist. But Baseline will amass a much larger and broader set of new data. The hope is that this will help researchers detect killers such as heart disease and cancer far earlier, pushing medicine more toward prevention rather than the treatment of illness.

 

"With any complex system, the notion has always been there to proactively address problems," Dr. Conrad said. "That's not revolutionary. We are just asking the question: If we really wanted to be proactive, what would we need to know? You need to know what the fixed, well-running thing should look like."

 

The project won't be restricted to specific diseases, and it will collect hundreds of different samples using a wide variety of new diagnostic tools. Then Google will use its massive computing power to find patterns, or "biomarkers," buried in the information. The hope is that these biomarkers can be used by medical researchers to detect any disease a lot earlier.

 

The study may, for instance, reveal a biomarker that helps some people break down fatty foods efficiently, helping them live a long time without high cholesterol and heart disease. Others may lack this trait and succumb to early heart attacks. Once Baseline has identified the biomarker, researchers could check if other people lack it and help them modify their behavior or develop a new treatment to help them break down fatty foods better, Dr. Conrad said.

 

Google has already built one of the world's largest networks of computers and data centers to serve online-search results quickly and run other data-hungry services like the video website YouTube. This computing muscle can now be used to store and crunch medical information and let other researchers access it more easily.

 
Via nrip

72% of consumers across the eight countries are willing to see a doctor via telehealth video conferencing for non-urgent appointments, according to Intel survey.

 

The study, “Intel Healthcare Innovation Barometer” was conducted across eight countries by Penn Schoen Berland in Brazil, China, France, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan and the United States from July 28 to Aug. 15, 2013 among a representative sample of 12,000 adults ages 18 and older.

 The findings concludes that most people are optimistic about technology innovations advancing healthcare, are open to sharing healthcare information for the greater good and receptive to using sensors for personalized care.
As the technology of remote patient monitoring solutions and mobile health applications improve, consumers now have the ability to connect with their providers in a variety of ways to embrace new behaviors

Other key findings of the Intel Healthcare Innovation Barometer include:

 

Improving Personal Care and Self-Monitoring with Technology

Sixty-six percent of people say they would prefer a personalized healthcare regimen designed specifically for them based on their genetic profile or biology.Fifty-three percent of people say they would trust a test they personally administered as much or more than if performed by a doctor. 

Sharing Anonymous Digital Health Records for the Common Good

People are more willing to anonymously share their health records or genetic information than their banking information or phone records.More than three-quarters (76 percent) of respondents over the age of 55 would be willing to anonymously share results of lab tests or health monitoring to contribute to research databases compared with 64 percent of millennials.India is the country most willing to share healthcare information to aid innovation. 

Emerging Technology Tools for Increased In-Home Health Management

Half of those surveyed would trust a diagnosis delivered via video conference from their doctor.Seventy-two percent are receptive to communication technologies that allow them to remotely connect to their doctor.The innovation least likely to be incorporated by the global population is a robot performing surgery.Almost half of respondents (43 percent) globally would trust themselves to monitor their own blood pressure and other basic vitals.

more at http://www.hitconsultant.net/2013/12/11/72-of-consumers-are-willing-to-see-a-doctor-via-telehealth-video-conferencing/
Via nrip

If 2013 was the year of wearables and health apps, what’s on tap for 2014?

 

Here are five exciting health tech trends to keep an eye on for the new year.

 

1. Data in the Doctor’s OfficeAccording to Pew Research, 21% of Americans already use some form of technology to track their health data, and as the market for wearable devices and health apps grows, so too will the mountain of data about our behaviors and vitals. Next year, we may see more of this data incorporated into our day-to-day medical care.

2. Smart Clothes

If a wristband or clip-on tracker isn’t part of your look, there’s hope for you in 2014, because a new wave of wearable smart garments will be hitting the stores next year. In fact, market research company Markets and Markets expects sales of smart clothes and fabrics to reach $2.03 billion by 2018.

 

3. Augmented NutritionOf course, if you want to fit into the latest smart fashion, you might need to keep better tabs on what you’re eating. We’ve already seen popular apps such as Fooducate make things easy by letting you scan the barcodes on packaged foods to gather nutrition data. In 2014, we’ll see new technologies that take even more of the guesswork out of counting calories. 4. Virtual House Calls

Virtual house calls also just got a big boost with the recent launch of Google Helpouts, a new marketplace for getting personalized help over live video chat. Although it’s still early days for the new service, you can already browse the Google Helpouts Health marketplace for medical advice, mental health issues, nutrition counseling, weight loss and more. You can even get wellness advice for your pets.

 

5. Health Rewards

If looking and feeling good isn’t enough of a payoff, how about getting paid for getting healthy?

 
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