Researchers Develop Smartphone App to Detect Opioid Overdose

Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a smartphone app designed to detect opioid overdose symptoms, HealthDay reports.

The Second Chance app detects when a person’s breathing dangerously slows or stops. It accurately detected opioid overdose symptoms more than nine times out of 10 in tests, the researchers report in Science Translational Medicine. The tests were conducted at a supervised drug injection facility in Vancouver, Canada.

The developers of the app are applying for approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to market the software as a potentially lifesaving monitor for people who use opioids.

“This is a very early conceptual model that has the opportunity for growth and the opportunity to make an impact years down the line,” said Fred Muench, president and CEO of the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids. “I wouldn’t be willing to endorse anything until it was tested in the real world,” possibly in people who naturally suffer from sleep apnea or breathing disorders.