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Technology that makes you healthy
By Julie Clothier for CNN
GENEVA, Switzerland (CNN) -- It looks just like watch -- but it does much more than tell the time. The "Body Area Network" sensor can take your temperature, check your pulse rate, measure your blood sugar levels and transmit the information to doctors in a completely different part of the world. The wireless device, currently undergoing clinical trials in Europe, was one of the topics discussed by health and technology experts in Geneva, taking part in a telecommunications conference this week. The device will eventually be used to monitor patients who are sent home earlier than normal from hospital, better manage acute trauma cases and monitor high-risk patients. World Health Organization Assistant Director General Dr. Timothy Evans, who chaired the workshop, said huge advances had been made in the area of "telemedicine" since the term was coined in the 1970s to describe health services that use wireless technology. These advances would continue as the cost of technology and new developments made it more accessible -- particularly in poor countries. "It's about taking the opportunities of technology, which shrinks both time and space, and using it for the purposes of health." He said he believed technology that allowed specialists to perform operations via remote control would be increasingly used in the future. In May this year, an Australian kidney expert performed a two-hour operation on a patient in New Zealand via conference link. He used a joystick linked to four remote cameras in the operating room and inside the patient's body and gave guidance in the removal of a diseased kidney. Dr. Evans said it was important for health experts to take part in developments in technology that could be applied to the health sector. "The private sector is the engine of introducing new technology. It's very important for us to understand what is happening in terms of those developments. But it's also very important for the private sector to develop opportunities within the health sector." Technology that allowed health specialists, like cardiologists, in remote parts of the world to monitor patients and make diagnoses while based in first world countries was also discussed in Geneva. About 150 people attended the workshop, part of the ITU Telecom World conference, which is attended by heads of state, government ministers, regulators, chief executives of multinational companies. The conference is held every four years and is organized by the International Telecommunications Union.
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