Overview
- The University of Maryland introduced a discreet, snap-on electrochemical sensor that noninvasively measures hydrogen and other gases in flatus, described as the first wearable to objectively track flatulence.
- In an initial study of 19 healthy adults wearing the device for about a week during waking hours, participants averaged 32 flatus events per day, with individual totals ranging from 4 to 59.
- The sensor detected increased hydrogen after participants consumed inulin, a prebiotic fiber, with 94.7% sensitivity, indicating diet-responsive microbial fermentation.
- Researchers emphasized that the early findings come from a small sample and are expanding research by enrolling U.S. adults 18 and older in the Human Flatus Atlas, with devices shipped for at-home use day and night.
- The project discloses patent filings naming Brantley Hall and Santiago Botasini, whose startup Ventoscity LLC has licensed the technology, with funding support from University of Maryland programs.