Researchers at Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic were able to successfully use artificial intelligence and Apple Watch ECG recordings to identify patients who had a weak heart pump.
The study, published Nov. 14 in Nature Medicine, analyzed 2,454 patients' Apple Watch ECG readings from August 2021 to February 2022.
The readings were uploaded to an app created by the Mayo Clinic Center for Digital Health and then uploaded to the patients' electronic health records, where clinicians could access all the ECG data on an AI dashboard.
Mayo researchers then interpreted Apple Watch single-lead ECGs by modifying an earlier algorithm developed for 12-lead ECGs that is proven to detect a weak heart pump.
The modified AI algorithm using single-lead ECG data was as accurate or slightly more accurate than a medical treadmill diagnostic test at detecting a weak heart pump, according to the researchers.
These findings suggest that the Apple Watch has the potential to detect heart failure in people outside of a clinical setting.