Samsung Galaxy Watches can alert users before they faint

Smartwatches and fitness trackers often tout expanded health monitoring capabilities, though some features can create more anxiety than reassurance without independent health verification, says CNET senior editor Anna Gragert I mentioned previously. Samsung on Thursday released new third-party research detailing how its Galaxy Watches can help detect signs associated with fainting spells.

Samsung has collaborated with Gwangmyeong Hospital of Chung-Ang University in Korea Evaluated more than 130 patients He suffers from fainting problems. The study included wear Samsung Galaxy 6 smart watch With photoplethysmography sensor that measures heart rate variability data collection. (The photoplethysmography sensor uses light to measure changes in blood flow under the skin.) This data was then analyzed using an artificial intelligence algorithm.

The watch predicted fainting attacks with great accuracy several minutes before they occurred. It showed an accuracy of 84.6% in these predictions, with a clinically meaningful sensitivity of 90% and specificity of 64%. In other words, this is enough to show that the smartwatch helped. Note that this study did not have any peer reviews at the time we read it, which would add important confirmation to these findings.

A Samsung representative did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A common fainting episode, commonly described as vasovagal syncope in medical settings, is rarely life-threatening but can indicate other medical problems and cause injury through a fall. However, patients Heart rate and blood pressure Signs can be spotted, and in some cases, fainting can be predicted before it happens – as is the case with the Galaxy Watch 6.

“This study is an example of how wearable technology can help transform healthcare from being designed for ‘aftercare’ to a ‘preventive care’ model,” said Jongmin Choi, head of the Health R&D Group at Samsung Electronics. In a statement.

Samsung did not announce its plans to use the results of this study, but it said it wants to expand the health monitoring capabilities of its wearable devices.