The Big Data is based on the processing, analysis and visualisation of large databases. This new term is acquiring great relevance thanks to the massive accumulation of data favoured by information and communication technologies. The year 2002 was the year in which the volume of digitised information surpassed for the first time the amount of information in analogue form, therefore this turning point can be considered as the beginning of the digital information era. Currently, this amount of digitised information is growing exponentially, with some sectors, such as the commercial and financial sectors, being the main drivers of this technology.
In this sense, the Big Data opens up a new era for improving the delivery of healthcare services, opening up new opportunities for the diagnosis and treatment of a multitude of diseases, as well as presenting an extraordinary potential in the field of medicine, as it allows the analysis of large volumes of data in order to predict, prevent or personalise treatments for different pathologies.
In this way, digital health can be understood as the application of the Internet and other related technologies in the healthcare industry to improve access, efficiency, effectiveness and quality of clinical and business processes used by healthcare organisations, physicians, patients and consumers in an effort to improve the health status of patients.
Some of the applications of the Big Data in this field can be electronic health records that are designed to record and share information by professionals in the health system; telehealth applications, both telehealth and telemedicine refer to the use of ICT at a distance to provide health services; or health exchange systems that allow professionals and patients to access and share clinical and administrative patient information.
The Big Data is the future answer to personalised medicine, which can be defined as the right treatment for the right patient at the right time.
