Wearable sensors enable tracking of autonomic metrics like respiratory sinus arrhythmia and vagal efficiency in daily life to better understand disorders of gut-brain interaction.
Wearable sensors offer a promising complementary method to traditional lab-based measures for tracking autonomic nervous system activity in disorders of gut-brain interaction.
BACKGROUND: Wearable technology is increasingly used in clinical practice and research to monitor functional gastrointestinal symptoms and mental health. AIMS: This article explores the potential of wearable sensors to enhance the understanding of the autonomic nervous system (ANS), particularly its role in linking psychological and gastrointestinal function. The ANS, facilitates brain-gut communication and is responsive to psychosocial conditions. It is implicated in disorders related to psychological stress and gut-brain interaction. Wearable technology enables tracking of the ANS in daily life, offering complementary and alternative methods from traditional lab-based measures. This review places focus on autonomic metrics such as respiratory sinus arrhythmia, vagal efficiency, and electrodermal activity as well as self-reports of autonomic symptoms. DISCUSSION: Potential applications include use of wearable sensors for tracking autonomic activity in disorder of gut-brain interaction such as cyclic vomiting syndrome, in which ANS dysregulation may be triggered by psychosocial factors. Considerations for data interpretation and contextualization are addressed, acknowledging challenges such as situational confounders of ANS activity and accuracy of wearable devices.
Jacek Kołacz (Thu,) conducted a review in Disorders of gut-brain interaction. Wearable technology/sensors was evaluated. Wearable sensors enable tracking of autonomic metrics like respiratory sinus arrhythmia and vagal efficiency in daily life to better understand disorders of gut-brain interaction.