Matthew Mellon, MD, on the development of a bio-monitor watch for autonomic dysreflexia

In this interview, Matthew J. Mellon, MD, FACS, discusses a project focused on developing a non-invasive bio-monitor watch for patients with autonomic dysreflexia, which can be due to bladder distention from urinary retention or a blocked Foley catheter. Mellon is an assistant professor of urology at Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis.

Video Transcript:

One of the projects that I'm working on right now is a collaboration with Purdue University, which has a very robust engineering program, looking at autonomic dysreflexia, which is a specific clinical condition that people see with spinal cord injuries. [We’re] trying to anticipate with a smartwatch some of the catastrophic blood pressure changes and things that happen in these patients. It's a large driver of health deterioration. So, that's always been an occult issue that they can't really sense. There's actually a quadriplegic professor who deals with this clinical issue himself, and so he's been a big driver. He and I have partnered together to make this non-invasive bio monitor watch that we're validating right now. So, that's been really exciting. It's been supported by the NIH and the Department of Defense and the army in particular. So, that's been really exciting.

This transcription has been edited for clarity.