FEATURE Two award-winning inventions from HKUMed combine AI and mobile devices to make it possible for people to effectively monitor their heart health and blood pressure using just their mobile phones. Both the heart monitor, Vitogram®, and the blood pressure monitor, Sphygmio, involve Professor Joshua Ho Wing-kei, from the School of Biomedical Sciences. Vitogram® has been dubbed an ‘AI doctor in your pocket’ because it can collect and analyse heart sounds―whereas most other digital health devices focus on pulse and electrical activity. It won a Gold Medal with Congratulations of the Jury at the 49th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva (IEIG) 2024. ‘Analysing heart sounds is important because it provides health data comparable to that obtained by a doctor using a stethoscope,’ said Professor Ho. ‘Our system allows anyone to use a regular smartphone to conveniently assess their heart health simply by placing their mobile device on their chest.’ If abnormal heart sounds are detected, users can seek appropriate medical attention, making the invention an important tool for the early detection of valvular heart disease (VHD), heart rhythm abnormalities and personalised health management. A clinical study conducted at HKUMed found that this smartphone-based AI system can accurately detect abnormal heart sounds caused by significant VHD at a level comparable to a doctor’s stethoscope assessment. Listen to Your Heart, Mobile Phone Only 10
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