Smartwatches and Activity Trackers: Revolutionizing Health Monitoring

A study by the University of South Australia highlights that wearable devices, such as smartwatches, can detect early signs of COVID-19, heart conditions, and falls with high accuracy. These findings demonstrate the potential of wearable technology to significantly improve personal health monitoring and management.

New research suggests that smartwatches and activity trackers, initially designed for fitness tracking, can detect early signs of diseases including COVID-19 and heart conditions. Conducted by the University of South Australia, the study analyzed 28 studies with 12 lakh participants.

The review found that the wearables could accurately identify COVID-19 status in 88 out of 100 people, similar to rapid screening tests. Additionally, these devices could detect atrial fibrillation in 87 out of 100 people and falls in 82 out of 100 people. The findings were published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research mHealth and uHealth.

Lead researcher Ben Singh noted that wearable trackers hold significant promise in real-world health monitoring, enabling proactive health management and early detection of health issues. While previous studies largely focused on COVID-19 detection, the devices' sensitivity and specificity for diagnosing atrial fibrillation stood out as particularly promising.

(With inputs from agencies.)