Affiliations: Faculty of Computing, Information Systems and
Mathematics, Kingston University, Kingston upon Thames, KT1 2EE, UK
Note: [] Corresponding author: Dr. X.H. Wang, Faculty of Computing,
Information Systems and Mathematics, Kingston University, Kingston upon Thames,
Surrey, KT1 2EE, UK. Tel.: +44 020 85472000 Ext: 62495; Fax: +44 020 8547 7197;
E-mail: [email protected]
Abstract: Over the last few years, there has been a blossoming of developing
mobile healthcare programs. Bluetooth technology, which has the advantages of
being low-power and inexpensive, whilst being able to transfer moderate amounts
of data over a versatile, robust and secure radio link, has been widely applied
in mobile healthcare as a replacement for cables. This paper discussed the
applications of Bluetooth technology in healthcare. It started with the brief
description of the history of Bluetooth technology, its technical
characteristics, and the latest developments. Then the applications of
Bluetooth technology in healthcare sector were reviewed. The applications are
based on two basic types of links of Bluetooth technology: point-to-point link
and point-to-multipoint link. The special requirements from healthcare and the
challenges of successful application of Bluetooth in healthcare will be
discussed. At last the future development of Bluetooth technology and its
impacts on healthcare were envisioned.
Keywords: Mobile healthcare, bluetooth, patient monitoring
