Assistive Technologies for Pulse-Based Tele-Practice in Traditional Chinese Medicine: Two-Phase, Dual-Method Feasibility and Pilot Study

TL;DR

This study tests a device that helps traditional Chinese medicine practitioners assess pulses remotely, showing it's feasible but needs improvements in accuracy.

Contribution

A novel assistive device for remote pulse palpation in traditional Chinese medicine is developed and evaluated for feasibility.

Findings

CMPs showed moderate-to-high agreement on frequency and rhythm but lower on width and force of machine-generated pulses.

Device refinements improved agreement on frequency and rhythm but not on width and force.

Participants reported high comfort and satisfaction with the device.

Abstract

Pulse palpation is essential for accurate traditional Chinese medicine diagnosis. However, this tactile-sensory-dependent technique is not feasible in teleconference, leaving traditional Chinese medicine underserved by conventional tele-practice frameworks. To address this, we developed an Assistive Pulse Data Collection (APDC; Logistics and Supply Chain MultiTech R&D Centre) device.

This study aimed to evaluate feasibility and to preliminarily examine the Chinese medicine practitioners (CMPs) agreement on real-person pulses and machine-generated pulses and collect users’ feedback.

Following World Health Organization guidelines for piloting new medical technologies, a 2-phase, dual-method evaluation was conducted. In the feasibility phase, 10 participants’ pulses were recorded using the APDC device. Overall, 5 CMPs evaluated the participants’ and machine-generated pulses using a 5-point Likert scale (1=“Strongly Disagree” to 5=“Strongly Agree”). In the pilot phase, 10 CMPs assessed pulses from 42 participants and refined the regenerated outputs for comparison. Quantitative and qualitative feedback from CMPs and participants was collected.

CMPs evaluated machine-regenerated pulses across 4 parameters: frequency (mean agreement score 4.1, SD 0.6), rhythm (mean 3.8, SD 0.6), width (mean 2.7, SD 0.9), and force (mean 2.4, SD 1), indicating moderate-to-high agreement for frequency or rhythm but lower consensus for width and force. Following device refinements (eg, adjustable armrest, pressure calibration, and pulse algorithms), the pilot phase CMPs’ agreement improved for frequency (mean 4.3, SD 0.7) and rhythm (mean 4, SD 0.8), while width (mean 3, SD 0.9) and force (mean 2.8, SD 0.9) remained suboptimal. CMPs reported enhanced clarity (mean 4.3, SD 1) but persistent inefficiency (mean 2.5, SD 0.5) and neutral satisfaction (mean 2.6, SD 0.5). Participants maintained favorable ratings for comfort (mean 4, SD 0.7), easy to use (mean 3.9, SD 0.8), and high satisfaction (mean 4, SD 0.7).

The APDC device is feasible and enables CMPs to take remote pulse feature assessment, but further optimization of pulse force and width is warranted.

Figures