Introduction: Can wearable detect sleep apnea. Once a rare medical condition, sleep deprivation has become a significant concern in the past few years. Sleep apnea is when a person halt breathing or falls asleep for several seconds to a minute or more. And this can occur several times within an hour.
Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder indicated by repeated pauses in breathing or external breaths during sleep. It can lead to fragmented sleep and various health problems, including cardiovascular issues, daytime fatigue, depression and cognitive impairment.
Detecting sleep apnea early is crucial for effective management and treatment. While traditional diagnostic methods, such as polysomnography, require a clinical setting, recent advancements in wearable technology have shown promise in detecting sleep apnea outside of the laboratory environment.
Can wearable detect sleep apnea
Wearable appliances, such as smartwatches and fitness trackers, are fitted with various sensors that can collect data during sleep and provide valuable insights into sleep patterns and breathing irregularities.
These sensors typically include accelerometers, heart rate monitors, and in some cases, blood oxygen saturation (SpO2) sensors. By analyzing the data collected from these sensors, wearables can detect potential signs of sleep apnea.
Continuous positive airway pressure is the most ordinary treatment for moderate to extreme sleep apnea. This technique uses pressurized air to open the patient’s airway, usually by wearing a face mask attached to a machine. CPAP effectively improves sleep apnea outcomes, but patient compliance may be a limiting factor due to the discomfort of long-term use.
One of the immediate indicators of sleep apnea is the presence of irregular breathing patterns. Wearable devices with accelerometers can track movement and detect episodes of interrupted or paused breathing during sleep. When a person experiences an apnea event, there is often a reduction in body movement, and wearables can detect this by monitoring changes in body position and movement.
Heart rate monitoring is another helpful feature in wearables for sleep apnea detection. Sleep apnea episodes can cause fluctuations in heart rate as the body reacts to oxygen deprivation.
Wearables with optical heart rate sensors can track these variations and identify abnormal heart rate patterns associated with sleep apnea. By analyzing heart rate data over time, wearables can provide valuable information about the frequency and severity of sleep apnea events.
Some advanced wearables also include SpO2 sensors that calculate the oxygen saturation levels in the blood. Sleep apnea often leads to drops in blood oxygen levels during episodes of interrupted breathing.
Wearables with SpO2 sensors like some Samsung wearables can detect these drops and alert users to potential sleep apnea. Continuous monitoring of SpO2 levels throughout the night can provide a more comprehensive picture of breathing irregularities and their correlation with sleep apnea.
To improve the accuracy of sleep apnea detection, wearables frequently combine multiple sensor data. By simultaneously analyzing data from accelerometers, heart rate monitors, and SpO2 sensors, wearables can create more robust algorithms to identify sleep apnea events.
Machine learning methods can also be applied to the collected data to improve the accuracy of sleep apnea detection over time, as the algorithms learn from user-specific patterns.
It is important to note that while wearables can provide valuable insights and initial indications of sleep apnea, a formal diagnosis still requires medical evaluation. Wearables are a screening tool, providing individuals with information to prompt further medical consultation.
Suppose a wearable device detects potential signs of sleep apnea. In that case, individuals are advised to consult a healthcare professional for a comprehensive evaluation and, if necessary, a formal diagnosis using traditional diagnostic methods like polysomnography.
How do wearables track sleep?
A 2018 study published in the US National Library of Medicine examined home sleep apnea testing (HSAT) devices to diagnose sleep apnea. These devices contained smartphones, smartwatches, and other wearables.
The fast growth and use of sleep apnea trackers is primarily due to the increasing majority of sleep apnea.
The reference standard for diagnosing sleep apnea is cardiorespiratory polysomnography (CP), a multiparametric sleep study of heart and lung function.
However, the testing capabilities of HSAT devices are becoming more accurate and specific for sleep apnea. The SCOPER scheme has been designed to evaluate and classify HSAT systems by validating the essential functions for sleep apnea diagnosis.
This acronym refers to functions such as:
- Sleep (S)
- Cardiovascular System (C)
- Oxygen saturation (O)
- Body Position (P)
- Respiratory effort (E)
- Air Flow (R)
The SCOPER process analyzes the functions required to characterize sleep apnea rather than measuring individual apnea events. For instance, it assesses the HSAT’s ability to differentiate between central and obstructive apnea, which is necessary for developing an effective treatment plan.
This diagnostic scheme thus allows new sensors and software to meet the criteria for successful diagnosis of sleep apnea. HSAT systems are also required to evaluate the severity of sleep apnea when reporting measurements.
Is there a watch that monitors sleep deprivation?
Many wearable devices have advanced sensors that can follow sleep stages, oxygen saturation levels, and heart rate, but none are FDA-approved to detect or analyze sleep apnea. At best, the data accumulated by these devices may imply that further sleep testing is needed.
Can Fitbit Identify Sleep Apnea?
Fitbit devices with SpO2 monitors may be able to detect underlying sleep apnea, but they are not FDA-approved to detect or diagnose sleep apnea.
What apps detect sleep apnea?
Many popular sleep-tracking apps are available for iPhone and Android platforms, such as Sleep Tracker 24/7 and SnoreLab, that can deliver insight into your sleep health. None of these applications are rated to detect sleep deprivation, but some may be able to provide other data about your sleep health that may indicate sleep deprivation.
Can the Apple Watch detect sleep apnea?
Like Fitbit and other wearable devices, the Apple Watch can detect parameters, such as heart rate and blood oxygen saturation, that may indicate sleep deprivation. Still, it does not comprehensively detect sleep deprivation and can’t diagnose it.
Conclusion
In conclusion, wearable machines have the potential to detect sleep apnea by monitoring breathing patterns, heart rate, and blood oxygen levels during sleep. These devices can serve as valuable screening tools, providing individuals with information that prompts further medical evaluation.
As technology advances, wearables may become increasingly accurate in detecting sleep apnea, helping individuals seek timely treatment and improve their sleep quality and overall health. Sleep apnea diagnosis and monitoring require cost-effective wireless technologies, especially where doctors and patients are geographically separated.
These technologies also permit researchers to investigate the causes of sleep apnea to develop better cures. Wearable devices are a discreet way to obtain essential data with minimal impact on the patient.
Also read: Can wearable cause cancer?; IoMT Wearable Device; Pros and Cons of IoT Devices