According to a study by the University of California and Apple Watch Cardiogram, the Cupertino smartwatch is capable of detecting atrial fibrillation
There’s news that will make Apple users happy and make the Cupertino-based company proud. The sensors that measure the heart rate of the Apple Watch could be used to detect fibrillation and other arrhythmias, symptoms of serious heart problems.
This is what emerges from a study conducted by the University of California in collaboration with Apple Watch Cardiogram, an application developed for the American company’s devices and used to measure the heart rate. According to the research, the sensors of the Apple wearable would be able to determine, with high accuracy, the presence of atrial fibrillation, a heart condition that leads the heart to have irregular beats. Scientists developed a deep neural network for Cardiogram, an intelligent algorithm that was tasked with detecting arrhythmia in the data collected by the Apple Watch.
97% accuracy
After the algorithm was refined with cardiac information collected in the 6,000 patients who participated in the study, it was validated using data from 51 people who underwent cardioversion, a procedure that restores regular heart rhythm after an arrhythmia. The verification group wore an Apple Watch for 20 minutes before and after treatment, and used the Cardiogram app. The results were surprising: the algorithm was able to detect severe fibrillation with an accuracy that approached 97%.
Although more studies are still needed, the research confirms the role that fitness trackers, smartwatches or other wearables in the future could play in preventing disease. Wearable devices collect a vast amount of sensitive information about our lives that, if used in the right way, could save lives.