ASSURE Wearable
Cardioverter Defibrillator
System
Kestra Medical Technologies is on a mission to provide innovative, intuitive medical technologies to protect and support at-risk patients. From their earliest beginnings, Kestra has cultivated, studied, and embedded empathy for patients and those who care for them into everything they do. It’s in the Kestra technology, and it starts with listening. They call it Empathy Powered Design™. Kestra selected Tactile to help design the ASSURE® Wearable Cardioverter Defibrillator (WCD) system, a wearable medical
device and system to protect at-risk cardiac patients from sudden cardiac arrest. Comfort, safety, and usability emerged as top priorities and were incorporated into all aspects for the ASSURE system. A complete digital healthcare suite, the ASSURE system includes a patient app for engaging patients in their recovery and a remote patient data platform providing configurable notifications and clear patient data for healthcare teams.
Accuracy with Maximum Comfort
ASSURE WCD needs to be comfortable enough for patients to wear, around-the-clock, for 1-3 months. The design team constructed a garment using breathable, lightweight fabric designed to move as the patient moves. The electrocardiogram (ECG) sensors are cushioned and embedded to maximize
comfort and signal quality. From the beginning, the design team set out to solve the challenge of a wearable defibrillator in a mobile environment (walking, exercising, driving, etc.) to reduce false alarms and improve arrhythmia detection accuracy.
All in the Details
Many elements of the ASSURE WCD system design are intended to dramatically reduce the noise caused by motion artifacts. The SensorFit™ Garments are designed with cushioned, integrated sensors to keep the sensors snug against the skin. The sensor surfaces consist of high-quality silver, an exceptional conductor for electrical signals; they are “resistive” electrodes–smaller, thinner sensors with improved ECG quality. The ECG cables are custom-designed
with double-shielding specifically to reduce noise. Quad Channel Processing™ utilizes four channels of high-quality ECG to determine the patient’s heart rate and rhythm. The ASSURE Detection Algorithm includes an ECG filtering technique called Adaptive Patient Intelligence™, a proprietary technology that adapts to the patient’s heart rhythm to filter out artifacts caused by patient motion.
Detection and Protection
The ASSURE WCD system is an FDA-approved medical device used to continuously monitor patient heart rhythms that can provide automatic detection and defibrillation for ventricular arrhythmias. It uses integrated sensors, a cardiac rhythm monitor, and an automated external defibrillator, delivering a defibrillation shock to restore the heart’s normal rhythm when needed. Additionally, the ASSURE WCD system interfaces with a mobile patient application
and remote patient data platform for clinician review. The ASSURE WCD system monitors the patient’s heart rate for dangerous heart rhythms. If the system automatically detects a fast, ineffective heartbeat (ventricular fibrillation), or if the system detects the heart’s lower chambers (ventricles) are beating too quickly (ventricular tachycardia), a shock is automatically delivered to restore normal heart rhythm.
Maintenance and Monitoring
The ASSURE WCD system assures patients will be protected during their recovery after a cardiac event through improved comfort, reduced false alarms, and constant connection to their healthcare team. The ASSURE WCD is available in two different garment
styles in multiple sizes, ensuring a comfortable fit for most patients. To learn more about the ASSURE Wearable Cardioverter Defibrillator system, visit Kestra Medical.
