PetPace Smart Collar Assists In Diagnosis Of Critical Sleep Condition
Burlington, MA (PRWEB) June 16, 2015 -- PetPace, the provider of an innovative IoT collar for remote real-time monitoring and analysis of pet vital signs, today released the findings of a new medical case study. The case study, available for download here, documents in detail how the PetPace collar successfully assisted the diagnosis and treatment of Jessie, an 11-year old, 20-pound spayed female Boston Terrier, for a severe respiratory disorder causing sleep apnea.
Jessie had already been treated for hyperadrenocorticism (also known as Cushing Disease), but her owner had recently become especially concerned about the dog’s excessive snoring and labored breathing while sleeping.
“Short-snouted dog breeds such as Boston Terriers often develop Brachycephalic Airway Syndrome (BAC),” explained Dr. Asaf Dagan, PetPace’s Chief Veterinarian. “It frequently involves narrow nostrils, a long soft palate and other upper airway abnormalities that interfere with the movement of air into the lungs. Affected dogs work harder to breathe, especially during exercise or in hot weather and frequently suffer from sleep apnea that causes them to wake up repeatedly while sleeping.”
To evaluate the severity of BAC in Jessie and better assess her quality of sleep, a PetPace Smart collar was placed around her neck.
The collar immediately began to provide valuable data on Jessie’s condition in terms of activity, respiration, and sleeping positions. From the activity chart generated by the collar, Jessie’s caregivers discovered that she was constantly tossing and turning during the night, sitting and standing several times and getting very little steady, deep sleep. The PetPace collar also revealed that Jessie’s respiratory rate while sleeping was clearly elevated compared to healthy dogs, registering 14 breaths per minute or more. In terms of sleeping positions, the collar indicated that Jessie slept almost entirely on her belly, a behavior that is typical of dogs with labored breathing.
“Overall,” continued Dr. Dagan, “the PetPace collar effectively monitored a condition that is nearly impossible for a clinician to fully assess during a standard veterinary hospital exam. Sleep apnea predominantly occurs at home and at night over a long period of time. The collar’s ability to deliver ongoing, quantifiable and objective data has enabled Jessie’s caregivers to accurately diagnose her condition, assess its severity, decide on a strategy for intervention, and monitor her response to treatment.”
“The information supplied by the PetPace collar is valuable and unprecedented,” said Jessie’s veterinarian, Dr. Dick Hay, a specialist in canine and feline medicine and surgery from Davidson, NC. “Using the data collected by the PetPace smart collar, we were able to get a clear picture of Jessie’s condition and conclude that surgery is warranted.”
Jessie’s case is another excellent example of the PetPace collar’s potential value in monitoring patients for ongoing conditions that are outside the scope of standard veterinary clinical monitoring, such as BAC-related sleep apnea. The high level of accurate information now available to veterinarians and pet owners through the collar continues to vastly improve clinical decision-making and enable markedly better patient care.
Jennifer Ferguson, Jessie’s owner, added “Interesting info! I knew there was a good reason why she was falling asleep standing up all day.”
About PetPace
PetPace was founded in 2012 to bring peace of mind to pet owners and prevent unnecessary pain and suffering for dogs and cats through improved pet health and quality of life. PetPace specializes in the remote monitoring of pet vital signs by utilizing advanced analytical methods and alerting models. The company’s low power, wireless collar is fitted with an array of sensors that report abnormal vital signs within established physiological and behavioral parameters. Once an abnormal sign or behavior is detected, a sophisticated Cloud-based analytical engine evaluates the signs and if needed, sends an immediate alert regarding any suspected condition. This allows the owner or the vet to take pre-emptive action to protect the pet’s health. For more information about PetPace real-time pet health monitoring, visit http://petpace.com/
Gal Steinberg, PetPace, http://www.petpace.com, +1 (617) 480-2926, [email protected]
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