Apple Watch Can Safely Detect Irregular Heartbeat

Apple Watch can detect and notify users when they experience irregular heart rhythms, finds a study demonstrating the ability of wearable technology to detect atrial fibrillation.

Researchers from the Stanford University studied whether the heart rate pulse sensor on the Apple Watch can identify atrial fibrillation, for over a year. Atrial fibrillation, a deadly and often undiagnosed condition, can lead to strokes.

The findings showed only 0.5 percent participants received irregular pulse notifications, but 84 percent of the time participants who received irregular pulse notifications were found to be in atrial fibrillation at the time of the notification and 34 percent who followed up by using an ECG patch over a week later were found to have atrial fibrillation.