Smartwatches are usually promoted with cardiovascular logging functions, which can be tempting for people with certain diseases. Can they detect a heart problem?
To answer this question, the German Heart Foundation explained that wearable devices are quickly reaching their limits in terms of detecting serious heart diseases, although they provide some useful functions;
Such as simply measuring the heart rate and ECG, so the user should do more tests when they suspect a heart problem.
Here is a quick look at the most important health functions in smart watches:
pulse oximetry
The wearable devices generate an infrared heart rate analysis that provides information on your heart rate and therefore helps detect and document arrhythmias.
German cardiologist Thomas Meinertz confirmed that the accuracy of measuring the heart rate in smart watches exceeds 90%, and corresponds to the accuracy of the measurement via the chest strap.
To ensure accurate measurement, the sensor and wrist must be clean, and the smartwatch must be close to the skin.
Electrocardiogram
In order to create a single-channel ECG, the smartwatch measures the electrical impulses of the heartbeat, and this is usually done by pressing the sensor and waiting 30 seconds.
The single-channel electrocardiogram is one of the most obvious ways to detect arrhythmias, compared to just measuring the heart rate, but Dr. Meinertz cautioned against relying on electrocardiograms only for diagnosing the disease.
The German doctor explained that the circulatory disturbances in the heart muscle cannot be detected by single-channel electrocardiography.
The German doctor added that the "Apple Watch" or other smart watches cannot detect heart attacks or serious cases of arrhythmia.
In the event of severe chest pain, which may indicate a heart attack, one should not rely on the smart watch and not waste precious time, but rather go to the emergency department in hospitals and get help from specialized doctors.