Makerere University engineering graduate Brian Turyabagye, and his team, have created a bio-medical smart jacket that detects pneumonia symptoms in children. According to the United Nation’s Children Funds (UNICEF) 27,000 children die every year from pneumonia in Uganda adding to the 500,000 total in sub-Saharan Africa.
Many of these deaths are due to a misdiagnosis of malaria and are therefore mistreated. Turyabagye witnessed this first hand when his close friend lost her grandmother to the illness. After visiting several clinics and receiving the same diagnosis of malaria, it was not until her death that the medical reports showed she had pneumonia.
Turyabagye decided to research a solution that would allow for a quicker diagnosis of pneumonia thereby eliminating misdiagnosis as the cause of death. Focusing on the symptoms of the disease, they designed a bio-medical smart jacket, specifically for children, since they are more prone to the disease. Similar to how a stethoscope works, the jacket covers the entire chest and side of the patient’s body. It is connected to a mobile app which allows the data and analysis to be sent to a healthcare worker for a confirmed diagnosis.
“This jacket, will simply measure the vital signs of pneumonia. That is the breathing rate, the state of the lungs and the temperature," said Turabagye. "Now those signs are transmitted to our unit here, through which a health worker can read off the readings, which include cough, chest pains, nausea or difficulty in breathing. With those additional signs and symptoms, they are coupled with the result that has been measured by the jacket and it gives a more accurate result.”
Named Mama-Ope or “Hope for the Mother”, the jacket could be a major advancement in saving lives in Uganda and throughout sub-Saharan Africa. According to studies done by Turyabagye and his team, the jacket is able to diagnosis pneumonia three times faster than doctors, reducing human error. Although it is currently in the prototype phase, and the team is awaiting certification from Uganda’s Ministry of Health, they are already being recognized for their innovative creation. In 2017, they were the winners of the Pitch@Palace Africa 2017 and shortlisted for the Royal Academy of Engineering Africa Prize
To learn more about Mama-Ope smart jacket, visit: http://mamaope.skyapps.tech/.