Grandma’s Shoe Is Calling Again

Posted by anywherehealth in Home Health on Nov 10, 2011 21:11 / no comments

Aetrex -  a leader in comfort and wellness footwear products, has partnered with GTX Technologies to create a breakthrough GPS shoe. Targeted for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, these shoes continuously monitor a patients’ location, and caregivers receive notification when they have wandered off beyond a pre-set distance.  These alerts also contain a direct link to a Google map that plots the wanderers’ location.

Alzheimer’s is becoming increasingly common in the US – currently impacting 5.3 million victims, with predictions of 14 million U.S. victims by the year 2050. Caregivers and family are also impacted, with the cost of care exceeding $100 billion.

As the cost of this technology follows the familiar downward curve, look for expanded uses such as shoes that can anticipate a fall or stroke based on changes in gait and activity. It’s also not difficult to imagine that these types of GPS chips will eventually find their way into children’s shoes and swimsuits.