Vital signs app on the Apple Watch: can it predict illness?
With watchOS 11, Apple evaluates the health data collected by the Watch overnight. Can this be used for diagnoses?
Apple Vitals app: collects data overnight and gives advice.
(Image: Apple)
The new vital signs app (aka "Vitals"), which has been added to the Apple Watch with watchOS 11, could help to detect illnesses in advance. At least that's what users are reporting on Reddit and elsewhere. The application has reported signs of a cold up to three days before the actual symptoms, for example.
However, it is unclear how often this really happens accurately. The tool records standard values, which the computer clock has been collecting for years, at night and then combines them. If there are any deviating values ("outliers"), the user is informed of these.
The app is ready after a few days
The Apple Watch does not work with individual measurement data, but with the overall picture. After a total of 7 days, during which the watch is worn while sleeping, it can recognize which values are "normal" for the individual user. If there are changes, a warning is issued, otherwise the vital signs app only indicates that the values are "typical". This alone seems to be enough to detect emerging illnesses at an early stage.
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The application combines heart and respiratory rate, temperature on the wrist (from Series 8 / Ultra), sleep duration and blood oxygen (from Series 6, currently not available in the USA). The vital signs app does not provide a diagnosis; instead, any deviations detected should lead to – seeking medical advice if – is repeated several times. Information about the "night vital signs" can be viewed on the computer watch itself as well as (more clearly) in the Health app on the iPhone. The latter can also be used to call up historical data. The app also recognizes "high", "typical" and "low" ranges for the individual values.
The Apple Watch is not a medical device
As usual, users should be aware that a computer watch like the Apple Watch is not a medical device – even if Apple usually has the measured values verified in studies. This was the case with the new sleep apnoea detection feature, for example, which has been officially activated from Series 9 and Ultra 2 onwards for several weeks. Here too, the watch only warns and does not diagnose; a real check of the condition must then be carried out by a qualified doctor (or in this case: a sleep laboratory).
Nevertheless, predictions such as those provided by the vital signs app can be helpful in adjusting your lifestyle if you notice that you might be developing an illness. The idea that sports and vital signs trackers can be used for early detection is not new: the fitness band provider Whoop has already shown that it is possible to detect COVID-19 disease several days before it breaks out using heart rate variability.
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