We’ve written about Neurometrix Quell pain relief wearable several times. Quell is a transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) device available without a prescription to manage leg, foot, and knee pain. Neuronetrix has 15 patents on the Quell technology and uses a proprietary neurostimulation chip. Quell is an established treatment for lower extremity pain. Neurometrix recently announced the Quell Watch App, which is available from the Apple Store.
You don’t need to carry a smartphone to control the Quell wearable when you use the Quell Watch App, which is a significant convenience for controlling a device such as the Neurometrix TENS device. If you’re walking, lying in bed, or at a meeting, you can use the app on your Apple Watch discretely and quickly. A Quell user with the Quell Watch App can tap on the watch to open the app to start, stop, or change the TENS therapy intensity. The app also displays the therapy schedule and Quell unit status including battery level, A Quell Watch App user can configure the app to send alerts for therapy interruptions or when the Quell battery power is low.
Based on my experience with TENS devices, the Quell Watch App is a relatively big deal. My orthopedic surgeon sent me home with a TENS device following complex rotator cuff surgery in 2013. Since that time I’ve used the original unit plus another one I purchased to manage pain in my shoulders, back, hip, and hands. I much prefer TENS to pharmaceutical pain relief. My current technology seems antiquated because I configure and control the stimulation with buttons and tiny dials on the TENS device, which i usually clip to my belt. I place ECG-like electrodes on the pain sites. The electrode patches connect to the TENS unit with long wires that I generally try to snake under my clothes so they won’t get in the way.
A smartphone app to manage TENS therapy would be a step up from my old-school wired TENS system, but a smartwatch app takes convenience to an even higher level. I use an Android smartphone and a Fitbit Versa 2 smartwatch. It makes sense for Neurometrix to launch the Quell Watch App on the Apple Watch platform due to market penetration. I’m going to reach out to Neurometrix to inquire about possible future support for Android, Fitbit, and other smartwatch platforms and will either update this article or post new content depending on the company’s response.
