Apple Working With Stanford to Determine If Apple Watch Can Detect Abnormal Heart Rhythms

[MacRumors]

Apple is planning to work with Stanford and telemedicine vendor American Well to determine whether the heart rate sensor in the Apple Watch can be used to detect abnormal heart rhythms and common heart conditions, reports CNBC.

An Apple Watch, if able to accurately detect arrhythmias, or abnormal heart patterns, could identify patients that are at a high risk of atrial fibrillation or similar conditions. Heart arrhythmias aren't always symptoms of a serious disease, but Apple Watch owners could find out about a problem from the Apple Watch and then get it checked out at a doctor if the device is determined to accurately predict heart problems.

"Atrial fibrillation is a common rhythm disorder and knowing someone has it is medically useful because those people might need specific treatments," said Bob Wachter, chair of the Department of Medicine at the University of California San Francisco.

A study conducted by the University of California, San Francisco and the team behind the Cardiogram app previously determined that the Apple Watch was able to detect abnormal heart rhythms with 97 percent accuracy. Apple could get even better results as it has access to raw data.

Just today, Apple CEO Tim Cook talked about Apple's health interests in an interview with Fortune. He said Apple is "extremely interested" in health, and that it represents a major business opportunity.

If you look at it, medical health activity is the largest or second-largest component of the economy, depending on which country in the world you're dealing with. And it hasn't been constructed in a way where the focus at the device level is making great products from a pure point of view. The focus has been on making products that can get reimbursed through the insurance companies, through Medicare, or through Medicaid. And so in some ways we bring a totally fresh view into this and say, 'Forget all of that. What will help people?'

Cook also said that Apple has been surprised to learn how the heart rate monitoring in the Apple Watch has already been helping people. Many people collect data with the Apple Watch, notice something amiss, and then go to the doctor to get it checked out. "A not-insignificant number have found out if they hadn't come into the doctor they would have died," said Cook.

Apple's study in partnership with American Well and Stanford is set to begin later this year, according to CNBC's sources.

Article Link: Apple Working With Stanford to Determine If Apple Watch Can Detect Abnormal Heart Rhythms

 

[Mansu944]

Apple is planning to work with Stanford and telemedicine vendor American Well to determine whether the heart rate sensor in the Apple Watch can be used to detect abnormal heart rhythms and common heart conditions, reports CNBC.

An Apple Watch, if able to accurately detect arrhythmias, or abnormal heart patterns, could identify patients that are at a high risk of atrial fibrillation or similar conditions. Heart arrhythmias aren't always symptoms of a serious disease, but Apple Watch owners could find out about a problem from the Apple Watch and then get it checked out at a doctor if the device is determined to accurately predict heart problems.

A study conducted by the University of California, San Francisco and the team behind the Cardiogram app previously determined that the Apple Watch was able to detect abnormal heart rhythms with 97 percent accuracy. Apple could get even better results as it has access to raw data.

Just today, Apple CEO Tim Cook talked about Apple's health interests in an interview with Fortune. He said Apple is "extremely interested" in health, and that it represents a major business opportunity.Cook also said that Apple has been surprised to learn how the heart rate monitoring in the Apple Watch has already been helping people. Many people collect data with the Apple Watch, notice something amiss, and then go to the doctor to get it checked out. "A not-insignificant number have found out if they hadn't come into the doctor they would have died," said Cook.

Apple's study in partnership with American Well and Stanford is set to begin later this year, according to CNBC's sources.

Article Link: Apple Working With Stanford to Determine If Apple Watch Can Detect Abnormal Heart Rhythms

Now this is really cool...I'm excited where the apple watch can go.

 

[ArneK]

While this is technically speaking very awesome, they will have to do a really really good job in regards of privacy concerns. I don’t think Apple should have any access to this data at all and one should have the option to only very specifically share this data with others such as your doctor.

 

[Juan007]

Amazing! The watch can literally save your life.

 

[toukale]

Current medecine needs to move beyond disease management to disease elimination and eradication. It's been so long since the medical field cured anything and we will probably not cured anything anytime soon. There is no money in the cure.

 

[Mansu944]

While this is technically speaking very awesome, they will have to do a really really good job in regards of privacy concerns. I don’t think Apple should have any access to this data at all and one should have the option to only very specifically share this data with others such as your doctor.

What if it is just metadata with you as the baseline?

 

[Mabus51]

As someone with AFib, I may buy another Apple Watch if they get this working. Have the first one and found it pretty much useless to me. Maybe next year.

 

[efktd]

This is the Rhythm of the night, the night, o yeah. The night before the Key-note

 

[Zaqfalcon]

A study conducted by the University of California, San Francisco and the team behind the Cardiogram app previously determined that the Apple Watch was able to detect abnormal heart rhythms with 97 percent accuracy. Apple could get even better results as it has access to raw data.

What's the accuracy of a visit to your General Practitioner? Much lower I'd imagine...

 

[scrapesleon]

I hope it will be in the bands and not necessarily the watch itself

 

[Apple_Robert]

This is awesome news. If this were to come to fruition, it would entice me to buy.

 

[Mad Mac Maniac]

the team behind the Cardiogram app previously determined that the Apple Watch was able to detect abnormal heart rhythms with 97 percent accuracy. Apple could get even better results as it has access to raw data.​

Wow this is very promising! I would have guessed more advanced HR sensor was necessary, but 97% accuracy without raw data is great. Now I just wonder if this is in 97% of participants or 97% of readings. If it’s 97% of readings that would be good enough (I would think) because since it measures your HR every 5-10 minutes surely it would be pretty easy to determine if you have an issue with extreme confidence. So that leads me to think that maybe it means 97% of participants. Still would be good

 

[citysnaps]

This is very promising as many people suffer from arrhythmias.

 

[nitramluap]

Few non-medical people understand the difference between heart rate (detected by the electrical activity of the heart - ECG/EKG) and the pulse rate, which is detected by pulse oximetry and the like (ie. the Apple Watch).

They are not the same and can differ markedly.

There is an awful lot you can't diagnose with the pulse rate alone and it would be dangerous to imply that you can, and make medical decisions with the data.

Leave the medical grade monitoring to medical grade equipment thanks....

 

[theMaccer]

Now that is a device/feature worth paying for.

 

[IJ Reilly]

This is very promising as many people suffer from arrhythmias.

This article left me confused as to whether arrhythmia should be treated as a "heart problem." My own impression is in general they should not be, as many arrhythmias are asymptomatic and/or don't present any health risk. As such arrhythmias are best referred to as a condition, not a problem.
[doublepost=1505189040][/doublepost]

Few non-medical people understand the difference between heart rate (detected by the electrical activity of the heart - ECG/EKG) and the pulse rate, which is detected by pulse oximetry and the like (ie. the Apple Watch).

They are not the same and can differ markedly.

There is an awful lot you can't diagnose with the pulse rate alone and it would be dangerous to imply that you can, and make medical decisions with the data.

Leave the medical grade monitoring to medical grade equipment thanks....

I don't think the suggestion is that Apple Watch becomes a diagnostic instrument, but rather to supply a warning that you might want to have something checked out by a doctor. I'm a little doubtful about this as well, but for the reason that I described already. I don't know what percentage of arrhythmias suggest actual medical issues that require treatment.

 

[pat500000]

Do we have to have 6 to 12 lead connector separately? Apple care plus?
[doublepost=1505189203][/doublepost]

Few non-medical people understand the difference between heart rate (detected by the electrical activity of the heart - ECG/EKG) and the pulse rate, which is detected by pulse oximetry and the like (ie. the Apple Watch).

They are not the same and can differ markedly.

There is an awful lot you can't diagnose with the pulse rate alone and it would be dangerous to imply that you can, and make medical decisions with the data.

Leave the medical grade monitoring to medical grade equipment thanks....

Ding ding ding. High five. As someone who works in medical field, i thank you for giving me an idea for research! It's a nice concept though.

People will say something to defend this idea, such as "it's better than nothing, or "it can work" and other relevant statment.

 

[ryanwarsaw]

That's all good and great but I need an updated Mac Mini before my heart skips beats. Are you listening to me Timmy? The next 24 hours will define how we interact as human beings here on MR.

 

[bigandtasty]

Amazing! The watch can literally save your life.

Yours too!

 

[190991]

Few non-medical people understand the difference between heart rate (detected by the electrical activity of the heart - ECG/EKG) and the pulse rate, which is detected by pulse oximetry and the like (ie. the Apple Watch).

They are not the same and can differ markedly.

There is an awful lot you can't diagnose with the pulse rate alone and it would be dangerous to imply that you can, and make medical decisions with the data.

Leave the medical grade monitoring to medical grade equipment thanks....

Well even you don't understand the difference. Heart rate (number of contractions of the heart per minute) is not detected by electrocardiography (ECG) but rather by echocardiography (echo; ultrasound of the heart), or by auscultating the heart with a stethoscope. ECG only meassures the electrical activity, which not always translates into a heart beat and thus not always contributes to the heart rate.

Regardless, a pulse measurement may be able to indicate an arythmia. It would probably miss some of the arythmias, but it would rarely give false positive results as the difference from electrical activity to heart rate to pulse is usually a loss of frequency rather than addition. Thus a warning about an uneven or too fast pulse would rarely be false positive. This would possibly help find plenty of undiagnosed atrial fibrillations – especially if data is combined with other predisposing risk factors such as age – and save people from strokes, for example.

 

[developer13245]

The 97% number is misleading. There are probably a few types of abnormal non-complex heart rhythms it can detect with that accuracy, but there is absolutely no way it can detect all abnormal rhythms.

For example, I'm sure it can detect asystole very accurately, but hopefully you kissed your apple watch goodbye by then

 

[unobtainium]

Researchers Attempt to Discover An Actual Use for Apple Watch

 

[calzon65]

Apple could relive my abnormal heart rhythms by not raising the price of the new iPhone to $1,000 as rumored

 

[DeepIn2U]

While this is technically speaking very awesome, they will have to do a really really good job in regards of privacy concerns. I don’t think Apple should have any access to this data at all and one should have the option to only very specifically share this data with others such as your doctor.

Privacy?
Going to Shoppers Drug Mary or Walgreens to heck your heart rate and blood pressure doesn't require any sign off for those apparatus' available for anyone to use at no charge. Their already getting our heart rate.

I can see great security applications with this:

1 I envisioned on Watch S1 announcement day - using AW as a security token (access card) for building / office entry - using heart rate history against per entry for 'normal' not under duress heart rate. Under duress deniers access. Yeah imagination is wild on that one.

Irregular heart rate to detect stroke or other ailments along with gyroscope for users with sudden weak heart rate/blood pressure/failure causing sudden loss of consciousness resulting in falling has an emergency call to 911. HealthKit and HomeKit working hand in hand using home internet connectivity for alerts, monitoring etc.

Both years ahead but I feel apple is thinking 4yrs into the future with this research starting.

 

[33man]

Soon the iLove app. It would seeyour heartbeat increase and some random girl wearing a watch too has the heart rate going up too, boom that's a match.(Will be disabled on roller-coaster for sure)