Sleep Apnea Monitoring using mobile phones

Abstract

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is a sleeping disorder characterized by the repetitive reduction of airflow during sleep. In this paper, we discuss the design and implementation of a user-friendly mobile application developed on multiple platforms (Windows and Android) to monitor and detect symptoms of sleep apnea using the smart phone's built-in sensors. The purpose of the application, Sleep Apnea Monitor (SAM), is to allow users to get a sense of whether or not they are likely to have sleep apnea, before continuing with more expensive and advanced sleep tests. In addition, SAM provides doctors and sleep specialists with remote access to patients' records and allows them to confirm their initial diagnosis. The parameters measured by this application are breathing patterns and movement patterns, which are recorded respectively using the built-in microphone and accelerometer. The recorded data is sent to a server for analysis in order to diagnose patients and maintain geographical studies of areas with sleep apnea patterns. The application is successfully tested among a number of users in the UAE. The system diagnoses and reports the level of the user's sleep apnea. In addition, doctors can remotely monitor users through the website, which is interfaced with Google Maps to keep track of user locations, and keep track of their analysed records.