We have been using medical machinery for decades and they have evolved well over the years. We see better results and information while also having the opportunity to use some machines at home. We are reviewing some popular machines and how they help us in the real world.
Monitoring the Heart
The ECG machine, also known as EKG or the electrocardiogram, has long been used to track heart rate and blood pressure at one time. An ECG/EKG is helpful for determining if someone is having a heart attack or developing heart disease. We find these machines in the emergency rooms in every hospital and are often used in a doctor’s office for annual physicals. They can detect emergencies and catch problems long before they get worse. Now, the FDA has even approved an at-home ECG/EKG device so that everyone can track their heart at any given time. At-risk folks can use the machine to simply monitor how their heart is doing. Those who are recovering from heart surgery can monitor their progress and alert their doctor if any suspicious readings come through. One can even check to see how their medications are affecting their heart, either improving the situation or causing new problems.
Sending Shocks to the System
The Tens machine is quickly becoming a popular tool that can be used at home. These units send small electrical shocks to the body to assist with pain management and other illnesses. We are quick to associate them for the treatment of back pain but they are excellent tools for any form of pain that one is experiencing all over the body. What is even more impressive is that Tens units can be used to manage depression symptoms. While many painful conditions lie in the muscles, Tens machines are perfect for nerve problems, and depression is often associated with many nerve issues.
Breathe Freely
Some patients need to be able to breathe and will find themselves on oxygen tanks while in the hospital. They become life-saving tools that one would assume you would only find in a hospital setting. Fortunately, there are plenty of options for the patient who needs to breathe freely while not bound to a hospital bed. Portable oxygen tanks and breathing apparatuses have become increasingly easy to obtain and perfect for many patients who are struggling with lung issues.
Sleep Easy
Once upon a time, we would struggle with sleep until we finally went and had a sleep study done. We would go to a clinic and get hooked up to a ton of machines and attempt to sleep. The machines would track our breathing habits, snoring habits, and how often we actually reached a healthy deep sleep. We could use that information to tackle whatever health problem was causing insomnia we all have had to deal with. It’s become even easier now that there are devices that can be used at home to give us an idea of what we are doing when we should be sleeping. Many at-home devices are not as cumbersome as a sleep clinic and they transmit information to our smartphones so we can see clearly what happens when we sleep.
When shopping for the right at-home medical machine, we highly recommend using an FDA-approved machine so that one can get the most reliable machine possible. If you choose to shop around online, read the reviews carefully. One should not rely solely on at-home medical machines for their health care, they should always be used in conjunction with your regular doctor and your health care plan. Any anomalies an at-home machine detects should be brought to the attention of your doctor so further testing is completed and verify your true health snapshot at the time.
