Contactless Assessment of Patient Vital Signs for Triage Using Remote Photoplethysmography in the Emergency Department An Observational Study Evaluating the VitalsTM System

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are evaluating a contactless method called remote photoplethysmography (rPPG) that uses a cell phone camera to measure vital signs like blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, body temperature, and oxygen saturation by detecting changes in skin color. This observational study will take place at the Accident and Emergency Department of Queen Mary Hospital and aims to assess the accuracy of the VitalsTM system in estimating these vital signs in adult patients. The study includes two stages: an initial calibration with 200 patients followed by an accuracy evaluation with 1,000 ambulatory patients, all clinically stable and triaged as semi-urgent to non-urgent. The contactless measurements will be taken using the VitalsTM platform based on facial video captured by an iPhone, iPad, and thermal camera, with a mounted LED providing light. These measurements will be done simultaneously with manual vital sign recordings by trained staff using standard hospital devices. The study will be conducted during weekdays from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM in a designated room where patients will sit still during video recording. Additional data like ambient temperature and light intensity will be collected to support the analysis. Participants will provide written informed consent before the study procedures. Vital sign measurements will be synchronized through software to ensure accurate comparison between the contactless and manual methods. The main outcome is the accuracy of heart rate estimation by the VitalsTM system, measured using intraclass correlation coefficient, along with accuracy assessments for the other vital signs. Patient satisfaction and comfort with both measurement techniques will also be evaluated throughout the study period from August to October 2024.

Contactless Assessment of Patient Vital Signs for Triage Using Remote Photoplethysmography in the Emergency Department