Verily, Alphabet's life sciences division, teamed up with the Aurora study, a $21 million investigation into trauma recovery led by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine.
The Aurora study — led by Sam McLean, MD, an associate professor in the anesthesiology and emergency medicine departments at UNC School of Medicine — brings together roughly 20 medical institutions across the country to study post-traumatic stress, post-concussive symptoms and depression. The study is funded by the National Institutes of Health.
The researchers will have access to the Verily Study Watch, which comprises multiple sensors, to collect continuous physiological data from participants in the months following a traumatic event. With this information, researchers will be able to evaluate changes in physiology and brain function in real time to better understand and diagnose adverse brain outcomes after trauma.
The nationwide study will begin enrolling participants — who the researchers will follow for roughly one year — this summer. In addition to the Verily Study Watch, Aurora investigators will also collect data from participants using in-person visits, genomic measurements, medical record reviews, neurocognitive tests, patient surveys and smartphone apps.
"We hope that these data will allow us to develop a much deeper understanding of these disorders," Dr. McLean said. "Using Verily's new advanced wearable technology creates the possibility of identifying people at risk of adverse brain outcomes in the initial hours and days after trauma, and diagnosing and monitoring treatment responses over time."