Among patients who received a smartwatch notification that they may have atrial fibrillation (AFib), 94% of those who followed up with a doctor were confirmed to indeed have the common heart rhythm disorder, according to a study presented at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) 2022 Annual Scientific Session.
The findings represent data from more than 2.8 million participants who downloaded an AFib screening app onto a Huawei smart device. Over the course of the four-year study, if the app detected normal heart rhythms while monitoring the wearer’s pulse, then the wearer would receive a call from a clinician inviting them to schedule an appointment.
“With the global surge of wearable technology for AFib screening, especially in the challenging setting of the COVID-19 pandemic, the present study provides a possible solution to help people identify possible signs of AFib and get diagnosed and treated earlier,” said Yutao Guo, MD, professor of internal medicine at Chinese PLA Medical School and Chinese PLA General Hospital in Beijing and the study’s lead author in an ACC statement.
