KTU PhD student develops a smart bracelet for heart monitoring

Research shows that cardiovascular diseases, including myocardial infarction, have been the leading cause of death in Lithuania for many years. However, early diagnosis can prevent serious complications or even death. Smart wearable devices are among the best solutions that can help register early signals that may lead to a fatal outcome.

Karolina Jančiulevičiūtė, a PhD student who is carrying out research in Kaunas University of Technology Institute of Biomedical Engineering, says that some patients who experience the first symptoms of a heart attack may not realise that their lives are in danger.

“This led to the idea that a dangerous condition could be detected by wearing a bracelet, a device that is easy to use at home. As soon as a person feels the symptoms, they can take an electrocardiogram and use the data to check for signs of a myocardial infarction,” says Jančiulevičiūtė.

Identifying a heart attack with a smart bracelet

The technology for identifying myocardial infarctions is being developed using an existing wristband. The key difference from existing bracelets on the market is that the device can record two electrocardiograms simultaneously. These are used to recognise signs of acute myocardial infarction occurring at different locations in the heart.

“Any solution that saves time and helps to identify disease or provide treatment faster is encouraged and needed. In addition, smart devices have been used in contemporary medicine for some time now, and medical staff are looking for ways to incorporate as many smart tools as possible into prevention and symptom monitoring. I hope that the heart attack recognition technology that we are developing in our labs will also become a tool that saves lives,” says Jančiulevičiūtė.

Currently, Lithuania has a cardiovascular disease prevention programme for people aged 40-60. It helps to assess the risk of these diseases, but often this is not enough to prevent serious and sometimes life-threatening consequences.

“It is encouraging that more and more people are using smart health monitoring devices to raise awareness, monitor their health and changes in their health status,” says the KTU PhD student.

Data-driven support

The database that is used by Jančiulevičiūtė and the team of researchers from KTU BMI was collected in collaboration with cardiologists at Vilnius University Hospital Santaros Clinicsas part of the project “Wearable technology for the immediate recognition of acute myocardial infarction: towards an out-of-hospital application (DetectMI)”, which was funded by the Lithuanian Research Council. The KTU PhD student has already published a scientific paper presenting the results of electrocardiogram reconstruction from wristband data in clinical practice.

While developing smart health technologies, Jančiulevičiūtė draws on her experience in laboratories in both Lithuania and abroad. While studying for her PhD at KTU, she travelled to a university in Italy and presented her work at a prestigious international conference.

“Next year, I am going on an internship to further deepen my knowledge of my chosen topic and gain related experience. I am delighted with my decision to study for a PhD at KTU and to have the opportunity to contribute to significant research,” says the young researcher.

Find out more about doctoral studies at Kaunas University of Technology.

30 Jul 2025