Wearable devices configured for facilitating diagnosis and/or assessment of pulmonary diseases, and corresponding methods

A wearable device configured for facilitating diagnosis and/or assessment of a pulmonary disease, the device comprising:

• a flexible patch having a single skin contact surface, wherein the skin contact surface is covered with a hypoallergenic adhesive configured to adhere to human skin, wherein the skin contact surface is substantially continuous and planar such that the patch is configured to be worn proximate to a suprasternal notch of a human subject and wherein the skin contact surface has a length configured to cause the patch to straddle two sternocleidomastoid muscles of the subject when the patch is worn by the subject;
• a water-resistant enclosure disposed upon or within the patch;
• an acoustic sensor disposed within the enclosure, the acoustic sensor being configured to provide an acoustic signal conveying information associated with internal respiratory sounds;
• a muscle activity sensor, the muscle activity sensor being configured to provide a muscle activity signal conveying information associated with contraction of an accessory respiratory muscle, wherein portions of the muscle activity sensor are disposed at opposing ends of the flexible patch;
• a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium disposed within the enclosure, the storage medium being configured to store information and provide access to the stored information;
• and
• one or more processors disposed within the enclosure, the one or more processors being configured by computer program instructions to:
• record onto the storage medium information conveyed by the acoustic signal and the muscle activity signal, the information being analyzable to identify wheezing;
• determine an occurrence of clinically significant wheezing correlated to periods of physical activity, the determination being based on information conveyed by the acoustic signal and the muscle activity signal;
• and
• determine a presence of poor asthma control based on the determination of clinically significant wheezing correlated to periods of physical activity.