Digital health is the fastest-growing category within the healthcare industry. This reflects in the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2022 held in Las Vegas, as several healthtech innovations including biosensing wearables, remote patient diagnostics, and monitoring services, telemental health and digital therapeutics hogged the limelight at the event, finds GlobalData, a leading data, and analytics company.

Abhishek Paul Choudhury, Disruptive Tech Analyst at GlobalData comments: “The COVID-19-induced demand for better consumer-grade healthcare solutions has pushed the investment and development of several digital technology-enabled products and services.”

Globaldata’s in-house data reveals that healthtech, despite a dip in the number of deals, has accumulated over $41bn venture capital (VC) investments during 2021, reflecting ~28% YoY growth with artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of things (IoT), and digitalization as some of the top technology themes that garnered maximum traction.

GlobalData’s Innovation Explorer database highlights key tech-driven innovations unveiled at CES 2022 that could reshape consumer healthcare while transgressing as the next big move in the digital era.

Consumer biowearables

Abbott announced the invention of Lingo, a new range of general-purpose consumer biosensing wearables, that can monitor vital signals like glucose, ketones, and lactate. The technology, which was developed to digitize, decentralize, and democratize healthcare, seeks to provide individualized and precise care, with the possibility to measure alcohol levels in the future.

Deep audio AI to diagnose pediatric pulmonary conditions

US-based Highmark Health and Bosch introduced novel sensor technology to collect audio that is then processed using ML technology to detect pediatric pulmonary disorders like asthma. It leverages Bosch's SoundSee technology to simulate a stethoscope for listening and detecting audio clues that can aid in patient diagnosis.

Human body virtual twins

Dassault Systemes of Ile-de-France demonstrated the potential that virtual twins of the human body can offer to healthcare. Visitors leveraged its SIMULIA PowerFLOW software to generate a virtual twin experience that allowed them to visualize, test, comprehend, and foresee how COVID-19 spreads via water droplets, the effects of drugs on diseases, and surgical outcomes that could manifest before a patient is treated.

Cardiac-focused remote patient monitoring services

Omron Healthcare displayed its remote patient monitoring services technology to provide digital health services to consumers and monitor the risks of heart disease and other disorders. The online service, known as VitalSight in the US, Hypertension Plus in the UK, and HeartVoice in Singapore, when paired with Omron's connected blood pressure monitor and mobile app, can assist users on their road to improved heart health.

Advanced airborne virus filtration unit

Texas startup Integrated Viral Protection (IVP) rolled out portable air filtration equipment to eliminate airborne viruses in a single pass, including sub-micron versions causing COVID-19, anthrax spores, allergens, and other dangerous respiratory triggers. The device incorporates IVP's proprietary 'catch and kill virus' technology, and is suitable for schools, office spaces, public transportation, and other compact indoor places.

Paul concludes: “Despite observing a slight slack in 2021 investments, VC money in digital health is expected to grow in the future as investors become more interested in unraveling the potential of digital technologies to cater to diverse consumer health needs like solutions to fight the COVID-19 virus, development of cutting-edge remote health solutions, and early diagnosis and curing of acute diseases