Open AccessFeasibility of non-contact cardiorespiratory monitoring using impulse-radio ultra-wideband radar in the neonatal intensive care unit
Author(s) -
Won Hyuk Lee,
Yong-Gu Lee,
Jae Yoon Na,
Seung Hyun Kim,
Hyun Ju Lee,
YoungHyo Lim,
Seok Hyun Cho,
Sung Ho Cho
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0243939
Subject(s) - cardiorespiratory fitness , neonatal intensive care unit , medicine , limits of agreement , respiratory rate , heart rate , concordance , impulse radio , cardiology , pediatrics , ultra wideband , nuclear medicine , computer science , telecommunications , blood pressure
Background Current cardiorespiratory monitoring equipment can cause injuries and infections in neonates with fragile skin. Impulse-radio ultra-wideband (IR-UWB) radar was recently demonstrated to be an effective contactless vital sign monitor in adults. The purpose of this study was to assess heart rates (HRs) and respiratory rates (RRs) in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) using IR-UWB radar and to evaluate its accuracy and reliability compared to conventional electrocardiography (ECG)/impedance pneumography (IPG). Methods The HR and RR were recorded in 34 neonates between 3 and 72 days of age during minimal movement (51 measurements in total) using IR-UWB radar (HR Rd , RR Rd ) and ECG/IPG (HR ECG , RR IPG ) simultaneously. The radar signals were processed in real time using algorithms for neonates. Radar and ECG/IPG measurements were compared using concordance correlation coefficients (CCCs) and Bland-Altman plots. Results From the 34 neonates, 12,530 HR samples and 3,504 RR samples were measured. Both the HR and RR measured using the two methods were highly concordant when the neonates had minimal movements (CCC = 0.95 between the RR Rd and RR IPG , CCC = 0.97 between the HR Rd and HR ECG ). In the Bland-Altman plot, the mean biases were 0.17 breaths/min (95% limit of agreement [LOA] -7.0–7.3) between the RR Rd and RR IPG and -0.23 bpm (95% LOA -5.3–4.8) between the HR Rd and HR ECG . Moreover, the agreement for the HR and RR measurements between the two modalities was consistently high regardless of neonate weight. Conclusions A cardiorespiratory monitor using IR-UWB radar may provide accurate non-contact HR and RR estimates without wires and electrodes for neonates in the NICU.