An amazing device being researched in Dundee could help cut the number of overdose deaths in Scotland.
The RESCU technology is a wearable sensor that detects if the user is having a drug overdose.
It can automatically alert emergency services to come to the aid of the wearer if his or her stats drop to dangerous levels.
The remote monitoring device is designed by digital health company PneumoWave, who are developing innovative technology capable of real-time detection of life-threatening respiratory emergencies.
They are now working with Professor John Dillon and his colleagues at Dundee University to study the physiological effects of opioid use, capturing data that will allow the company to further develop the sensor. This will enable it to detect the onset of breathing and heart difficulties and alert first responders.
Professor Dillon and his colleagues at NHS Tayside previously carried out the pioneering work that led to Tayside becoming a world leader in Hepatis C elimination.
Hep C is commonly contracted by patients with Opioid Use Disorder and Professor Dillon said he hopes the trial will demonstrate that PneumoWave’s respiratory monitoring technology has the potential to save many lives.
He said: “Working in the field that I do, I see first-hand the devastation that opioid overdoses bring.
“Large numbers of my patient group die from overdoses every year and this is a major issue everywhere, but one that we in Scotland need to address particularly urgently.
“The bare statistics about drug-related deaths are there for everyone to see, but these do not tell the whole story – that of the many tragedies and lost opportunities that lie behind them and the heartbreak that they bring to families and loved ones. I am hopeful that this device will become a tool to contribute to the efforts to prevent these senseless losses.”
Dr Bruce Henderson, CEO and founder of PneumoWave and a physician working with patients at risk of overdose, added: “The RESCU study is critical in the development of this potentially life-saving technology.”
Deaths from opioids occur due to respiratory depression, an unpredictable side effect of both prescription and illicit opioid use.
Scotland has the worst rates of overdose deaths in Europe with 1,339 deaths in 2020, a 5% increase from 2019.
Nearly all these deaths are preventable when a highly effective antidote, naloxone, is administered early enough.
Currently, there is no ability to detect an overdose and use of naloxone relies on coincidental discovery of those affected.
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