Systems and methods for the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) include at least one electrically stimulating electrode coupled to a pulse generator. Individuals with GERD are treated by implanting a stimulation device within and/or proximate the patient's lower esophageal sphincter, gastric fundus, or other nearby gastrointestinal structures and applying electrical stimulation to the patient's lower esophageal sphincter and/or fundus, in accordance with certain predefined protocols. Electrical stimulation provided by the disclosed systems results in an increase in the length of the high pressure zone of the LES and/or modulation of the receptive relaxation response of the fundus to decrease gastric pressure, creating a longer barrier to the reflux of gastric contents or increasing functional lower esophageal pressure respectively, thereby treating GERD.

The present invention relates to methods for assessing swallowing motor function in a subject. The methods rely on obtaining intraluminal impedance and pressure measurements from the pharynx and/or esophagus of the subject during clearance of a bolus from the mouth and/or throat of the subject. The intraluminal impedance and pressure measurements are combined to derive a value for one or more pressure-flow variables in the pharynx and/or the esophagus of the subject. The value of the one or more pressure-flow variables is compared to a predetermined pharyngeal and/or esophageal reference value for the one or more pressure-flow variables in order to provide an assessment of swallowing motor function in the subject. The intraluminal impedance and pressure measurements can also be combined to generate a swallow risk index for the subject or to generate an obstructive risk index for the subject based on a combination of a value of more than one pressure-flow variable in the pharynx and/or esophagus of the subject. In this way, swallowing motor function in the subject can be assessed by comparing the swallow risk index or obstructive risk index for the subject to a predetermined reference swallow index or predetermined reference obstructive index, respectively. Products which make use of these methods are also encompassed by the present invention.

In a method and apparatus for swallowing impairment detection, a candidate executes one or more swallowing events, and dual axis accelerometry data is acquired representative thereof. Upon feature extraction and classification, vibrational data acquired in respect of each swallowing event is classified as indicative of one of normal or possibly impaired swallowing.

Apparatuses for detecting swallowing disorders and methods for using same are provided. In a general embodiment, the apparatuses include a disposable sensor base and a sensor that is received by the disposable sensor base. The sensor base includes a sensor interface having a predetermined cut-away shape and a directionally-keyed mating surface. The sensor includes a handle portion having a shape that corresponds to the predetermined shape of the sensor interface, a support portion configured to be received by the directionally-keyed mating surface when the sensor is inserted into the sensor interface, and electronics configured to collect data sensed by the sensor. The apparatuses of the present disclosure can be attached to a patient's neck to detect and/or diagnose swallowing disorders during a swallowing test.

Embodiments herein relate to systems, devices and methods for managing pharmacological therapeutics and aspects of the same. In an embodiment, a hearing assistance device can include a control circuit, an electroacoustic transducer for generating sound in electrical communication with the control circuit, a power supply circuit in electrical communication with the control circuit, and a sensor package in electrical communication with the control circuit. The control circuit can be configured to evaluate a signal from at least one of the sensors of the sensor package to detect administration of a therapy or receive data indicating that administration of a therapy has taken place. The control circuit can also be configured to record an instance of a detected medication administration event along with a timestamp. Other embodiments are also included herein.

This invention is a wearable device which helps a person to track their food intake as part of a system for nutritional intake monitoring and management. This invention can be embodied in a smart watch and/or wrist band with a camera, a display and/or camera viewfinder, a spectroscopic sensor, and an eating detector. The eating detector can be an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a magnetometer, a microphone, or an EMG sensor. The camera and/or the spectroscopic sensor can be automatically activated when the person eats food, but otherwise remain off to help maintain privacy.

Trained machine learning models can be used for analysis of signals obtained through an in-ear or on-body device. Signals can be analyzed to determine information related to activities such as eating, chewing, drinking, coughing, or sneezing. In addition, data from an in-ear thermometer or other data sensors can be analyzed in conjunction with the machine learning models to provide data or recommendations to a user on a user device or initiate an action.

A monitoring system is provided for a feeding bottle, in particular a feeding bottle for feeding milk to a baby. Motion of the feeding bottle is sensed during feeding and a sucking performance is determined from the motion characteristics, in particular to identify whether the feeding is based on suckling or sucking.

A feeding bottle includes a bottle enclosure defining a hollow bottle chamber, wherein the enclosure defines a feeding outlet at a first end and an attachment structure 26 at a second end. A bottom housing defines an instrument compartment extending between a closed exterior portion of the bottom housing and a separation surface within the bottom housing, wherein the bottom housing is configured for detachable connection to the attachment structure 26 of the bottle enclosure. A relief valve is positioned within the separation surface of the bottom housing. A pressure sensor is positioned adjacent the separation surface of the bottom housing and connected by a passageway to the instrument compartment in the bottom housing, wherein the pressure sensor is configured to detect changes of pressure in the bottle enclosure.

Embodiments herein relate to ear-wearable devices and systems that can detect a risk of infection in a device wearer. In a first aspect, an ear-wearable infection sensor device is included having a control circuit, a microphone, a sensor package, and an electroacoustic transducer, wherein the electroacoustic transducer is in electrical communication with the control circuit.

The ear-wearable infection sensor device can be configured to analyze data from the sensor package to determine physiological parameters of a device wearer and evaluate the physiological parameters to detect the risk of an infection. Other embodiments are also included herein.