ECG detection on Apple Watch
ECG detection on Apple Watch allows you to detect the frequency of electrical impulses in your heart to get your heart rate and see if your heart is moving normally, slowly, rapidly, or irregularly. Here's what you need to know to get an electrocardiogram on your Apple Watch.
The Apple Watch is now available with ECG detection1
December 14, 2012 - Today's Apple Watch ushered in the WatchOS 8.3 system update, which also ushered in a long-awaited new feature, the ECG function.
Apple added ECG to the Apple Watch Series 4, but the Chinese version was never approved until the middle of this year, when it was finally launched after 3 years.
What is ECG? An electrocardiogram (also known as an ECG or EKG) is a test that records the timing and intensity of the electrical signals that cause the heart to beat. By looking at the ECG, your doctor can gain insight into your heart rhythm and check for arrhythmias.
To enable this feature on Apple Watch Series 4 and newer (except for Apple Watch SE), users need to upgrade their phone version to iOS 15.2 and their watch version to WatchOS 8.3, and select the Heart option in the Watch app and tap The mobile ECG atrial fibrillation alert software can be turned on. Note that it cannot be turned on if you are under 22 years old.
Those who have turned on ECG in other regions ahead of time don't need to worry too much. The current version of the ECG software in China is Version 1, while those in Hong Kong, Macao, or abroad are Version 2, and version V1 of the ECG algorithm can only detect AF at regular heart rates, while V2 can detect AF at high heart rates. ECG algorithm version V1 can only detect AF at normal heart rates, while V2 can detect AF at high heart rates. Because some people experience atrial fibrillation just after exercise and in the presence of mood swings, V2 can infer ECG characteristics more accurately than V1, which is prone to "inconclusive" results in ECG measurements, and V2, which is much less likely to do so.
Upgrade if you don't have the ECG feature yet!
National Apple Watch opens ECG detection 2The 'ECG ECG feature that national Apple Watch users have been waiting for years is finally online. Recently, Apple has opened up ECG ECG for country line users in the latest WatchOS 8.3 beta 4 system version, and those who have upgraded will be able to turn on the feature in the Watch app - Heart.
Although this is a beta release, it means that the ECG feature is not far away from the official release.
According to the Apple Health app, an electrocardiogram, also known as an ECG or EKG, is a test that records the timing and intensity of the electrical signals that make up a heartbeat. The app examines these pulses to get your heart rate and to see if the heart's upper and lower chambers are beating in a regular rhythm. If it's irregular, it indicates atrial fibrillation.
In fact, the ECG ECG test feature was introduced on Apple Watch Series 4, which was launched by Apple back in 2018. However, the feature is regulated due to its medical device attributes. And previously, Apple failed to successfully pass the medical device certification of the Drug Administration, so the function is not available in China, and Apple also completely blocked it in the watch, resulting in the inability of the country line users to use it.
According to previous reports, in June of this year, the State Drug Administration issued a medical device approval certificate (import) to be received in the information, Apple is listed, the registration certificate number for the National Instruments Note into 20212210223, approved function is precisely ECG electrocardiogram. After a period of adjustment, December finally appeared in the country line Apple watch beta.
However, due to hardware shortcomings, this feature is not available on the Apple watch SE. Users who have upgraded the beta system can also try to experience it. But it's not official yet, so regular users need to be careful about using it.
After Apple watch opens this function, or will attract some attention to the health of the crowd, the sales data of Apple watch has a certain climb.
National Apple watch open ECG detection 3
Apple from the Apple Watch fourth generation will begin to support ECG electrocardiogram function, but until the seventh generation of this year's products, the domestic market is still unable to open, which is a major pain point that domestic users are always eagerly looking forward to.
Currently, there are only a handful of smartwatches from major domestic manufacturers that have passed the stringent certification and support ECG. The best OPPO Watch2, for example, has an ECG version priced at 2,499 yuan, which is five to six hundred dollars more expensive than the top of the ordinary version. If the Apple Watch is able to push the ECG function in full, its comprehensive experience is quite cost-effective, to be honest.
Unexpected surprise. Apple pushed out the iOS 15.2 RC Preview and WatchOS 8.3 RC Preview software updates to users worldwide on December 8th. Although not mentioned in the official update content, but after the user's actual experience found that the new system under the country line Apple Watch finally support the full ECG ECG detection function.
Only two steps are needed to smoothly open the ECG detection
The first step is to upgrade your iPhone to iOS 15.2 RC preview; the second step is to upgrade your Apple Watch to WatchOS 8.3 RC preview, which will complete all the preparations for opening the ECG function of the China line. ECG feature is ready to be turned on. That's right, it's that simple.
The RC Preview is the last test version before the official Apple system update, and the firmware is basically the same as the official version. If people don't know how to upgrade the RC Preview, they are expected to receive the official version as early as next week.
After all the updates are complete, you can open the Health app on your iPhone and enable the ECG service, and then the Apple Watch will display the "ECG Atrial Fibrillation Enhancement Software", which allows you to record ECGs at any time. You can then record an ECG and check for atrial fibrillation at any time.
In the actual measurement, users need to place their finger on the crown and hold it steady for 30 seconds to see the measurement data.
What is the use of smartwatch ECG ECG test?
An ECG, also known as an ECG or EKG, is an electrical impulse generated by the human heart every time it beats, causing it to contract and send blood to other parts of the body. By measuring the frequency of the electrical impulses in the heart, the heart rate can be obtained and whether the heart's activity is normal, slow, fast, or irregular.
In the iPhone's Health app, Apple gives the details. If the measurement is "sinus rhythm", you're assuming that your heart is working normally; if it says "atrial fibrillation", it's a serious arrhythmia and you need to go to the hospital right away to get checked out and treated; and there's also high and low rhythms, among other things.
Although the ECG on a smartwatch is not the final medical result compared to specialized medical devices, it can still provide great help and early warning for our personal health in our daily lives. The ECG function of smartwatches has very strict certification requirements and must be passed before it is allowed to be used.
In June of this year, Apple's mobile ECG atrial fibrillation enhancement software successfully passed the State Drug Administration's Medical Device Approval Certification Document, so it was able to support the country's ECG function for the first time in the iOS15.2 system update, which also means that we no longer have to worry about the future of Apple will be withdrawn from the function.