Around seven people die of heart attacks each day in Thailand and with only about 2 per cent of victims getting access to medical treatment on time the chances of survival are not good. The research team aims at alerting vulnerable people to possible dangers.

The project is one of the Biomedical Engineering Association of Thailand's ventures. Suranan Noimanee, head of the applied computer for biomedical engineering research unit at Chiang Mai University, said that his team was trying to develop a micro-controller to be attached to an electro-cardiogram, which measures a patient's cardiac wave patterns.

The micro-controller, he said, would receive signals from the electro-cardiogram, and if it found a patient's waves to be abnormal, it would call for immediate medical attention. The team has adapted a cell-phone network so that doctors can be tipped off. The micro-controller will link up with a personal digital assistant (PDA) phone wirelessly to send an alert as well as a cardiac wave graph. It will expedite the treatment, he said.

"PDA phones, as opposed to normal cell phones, will allow doctors to receive files of cardiac graphs and examine them on the screen. This information is vital, letting doctors know their patients' condition so they can suggest the right remedies," Suranan said.

Seventy per cent of the work on the project is over. The team is now developing the software for detection of abnormalities and for communication.

He said that the team had worked with Thai cardiologists to fine tune the system for accuracy. "Currently, patients have only a two per cent of chance of survival but we hope this system will increase that to 30 or even 40 per cent," Suranan said.

He added that two models were being planned for the warning system, the first one for intensive care units and the second for personal monitoring. The ones in intensive care units will monitor patients' heart symptoms round the clock to eliminate errors by those not deemed experts. Examining the cardiac graphs requires the sort of expertise which is beyond general physicians.

On the other hand, heart patients, using the system themselves, will be forewarned of afflictions so they can avail themselves of medical advice and assistance. The team wants the National Electronics and Computer Technology Centre to give it Bt2 million to complete the development. It is hoped that a complete prototype will come out a year later. The team is in the patent-registration process besides holding talks with a private company to license the technology for mass production.

pongpen@nationgroup.com

Pongpen Sutharoj

The Nation