“NightWatch System Reliably Alarms Severe Epileptic Seizures in Children at Home: UMC Utrecht Research”

From recently research shows that the NightWatch system, which was co-developed by researchers at UMC Utrecht, reliably alarms in the event of severe epileptic seizures in children at home.

NightWatch is a medical device that is worn around the upper arm during sleep. The device has been extensively tested, now also with children with epilepsy in their own bedroom at home. It was also examined whether it reduces the burden on the caregivers.

SEIN, the expertise center for epilepsy and sleep medicine, conducted research into the use of the NightWatch in the home environment together with the UMC Utrecht and Kempenhaeghe. The researchers involved children aged 4 to 16 years with at least 1 weekly major motor attack during sleep. They compared a 2-month period without the NightWatch with a 2-month period when NightWatch was used.

The researchers involved 53 children and analyzed 2310 nights. There were no less than 552 major motor attacks. Only 10% of all attacks were missed. The number of false alarms was low, with an average of once every 3 nights. Caregivers reported less stress while using the NightWatch, while sleep quality and quality of life remained the same. The researchers also expect positive effects in these areas in the long term.

Bron:

UMC Utrecht