Longitudinal evaluation of balance quality using a modified bathroom scale: usability and acceptability

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Health Informatics

Background:

• Remote monitoring technologies are crucial for managing elderly health.
• Usability and long-term acceptability of health devices in home settings are key research areas.
• Objective measurement of balance and weight changes can inform health interventions for seniors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To adapt a commercial bathroom scale for remote data acquisition and transmission.
• To evaluate the usability and acceptability of this adapted scale in elderly individuals over an extended period.
• To explore the potential of extracted data, including vertical force and stabilogram, for monitoring health and balance.

Main Methods:

• Commercial bathroom scales were modified to capture raw weight sensor data.
• Data were transmitted wirelessly to a server using mobile phone technology.
• A long-term experiment involving 22 elderly participants collected over 5000 weight recordings.
• Analysis involved extracting variables from vertical force measurements and stabilograms.

Main Results:

• The adapted technology demonstrated high user acceptance among elderly participants.
• Significant day-to-day variability in measurements was observed and addressed using a moving average.
• A developed balance index effectively identified temporal changes in user balance.
• Over 5000 weight recordings were successfully collected, demonstrating feasibility.

Conclusions:

• The adapted bathroom scale is a user-friendly and acceptable technology for long-term remote health monitoring in the elderly.
• Quantitative analysis of weight and balance data shows promise for tracking health status and detecting changes over time.
• This approach offers a viable method for unobtrusive health surveillance in home environments.