A section on the future of digital health was presented by researchers at Mount Sinai in the form of an Apple Watch.
The Warrior Watch team study is one of the first on the topic of wearable devices used to identify COVID-19 in people. It turns out that using such a device can identify the virus up to seven days before current test methods, such as nasal swabs.
This new method can pave the way for future diagnostic methods and help in tracking and improving virus management.
The team study was published in Journal of Medical Internet Research.
How wearable devices detect COVID-19
Over the course of the study, which lasted from April to September 2020, the team recruited several hundred health workers from Mount Sinai. These participants used Apple Watches linked to their iPhone apps, using the app to collect and monitor their health status. They also completed daily surveys to give feedback on potential COVID-19 symptoms and other factors, such as stress.
The main focus to which the study’s researchers paid close attention was heart rate variability (HRV), something that detects when a person’s nervous system is overloaded.
What the team noted was that, through this method of using an Apple Watch and closely monitoring participants’ health, they could predict infections up to a week before traditional tests confirmed the diagnosis.
Furthermore, they noticed that HRV patterns returned to normal one to two weeks after diagnosis.
How they can be useful against COVID-19
By helping to detect COVID-19 earlier thanks to wearables, more people could isolate themselves earlier, thereby minimizing the spread of the virus during that crucial week before the tests were carried out.
Most importantly, however, this method can be performed remotely. No health professional needs to be put in danger to perform traditional COVID-19 tests, as the diagnosis would be anticipated and detected remotely, from the beginning.
The team points out that it is continuing to collect data on how the use of Apple Watches and other wearable devices can help to discover the impact of COVID-19 on the health of healthcare professionals, and how factors such as sleep and physical activity are associated with the disease.