An innovative heart rate monitor for newborn babies has been awarded CE certification.
SurePulse VS represents a significant advance for babies, parents and clinicians in providing important and timely information to provide optimal care for newborn babies.
Approximately 10% of newborns (80,000/yr in UK, 14 million/yr worldwide) require some form of enhanced support or resuscitation at birth. Reasons for this include being born too early or with other complications such as partial umbilical cord strangulation or congenital abnormalities. Those who receive the necessary aid quickly and efficiently will generally go on to lead normal lives, however those for which this is not the case are at risk of harm include damage to their brain or blindness for example.
International guidelines recognise that the baby’s heart rate is a key indicator of how well the baby is doing and how well interventions are working, but currently there is no reliable way of measuring heart rate straight after birth. A stethoscope is the most common heart rate assessment method, but is recognised as being prone to error.
SurePulse Medical Ltd was set up to solve this dilemma. The heart rate monitor that we have developed, SurePulse VS, has now received CE approval. It uses a small and safe optical sensor mounted in a soft cap placed on the baby’s head, which also helps to keep the baby warm. The SurePulse VS monitor has been successfully tested at the University of Nottingham NHS Trust Hospitals.
SurePulse Medical Ltd is a joint venture between the University of Nottingham and Tioga Ltd. This collaboration combines the academic strength of the University with the commercial and manufacturing capabilities of one of the UK’s premier Contract Electronics Manufacturers.
SurePulse VS is now available to clinicians for heart rate monitoring in newborn babies throughout Europe.
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