The Apple Watch is a device very focused on health, even capable of performing ECGs that, without being able to consider medical studies, have helped many people detect heart conditions. Stanford University now wants to go further and find out if this device may be able to help detect people with COVID-19 in the future. Here we tell you more details.
Stanford investigates using Apple Watch against COVID-19
The terrible global coronavirus pandemic that we are experiencing is forcing a multitude of scientists and technology experts to advance as much as they can in the fight against it. No possibility can be ruled out as far as this fight is concerned and this is where the Apple watch would enter fully, which is being the subject of a thorough investigation in which it is tried to check how it could help detect people sick with this virus.
This particular study is echoed by 9to5Mac , in which Stanford University intends to test Apple Watch and Fitbit watches to track infectious diseases such as COVID-19 . For this they still need the participation of several people, who would have to download an application and complete a series of weekly surveys in which they indicate if they have symptoms or not. However, the people who can participate are, at the moment, residents of the United States.
Having features for measuring heart rate and other cardiac arrhythmias could make the Apple Watch even more useful in research. It seems complicated that this device can now be considered a medical instrument, since it has never been classified as such given the lack of some tools that are available in hospitals, but it can be a good element to keep in mind when tracking how the coronavirus is moving.
And Apple, could you do something about it?
As we say, this research is more focused on people who wear an Apple Watch and their possible COVID-19 infections, although this does not mean that some strata of society are not looking at the apple watch as a possible element of help. essential for people infected in the future. In fact, new features are rumored for future generations of the watch and versions of watchOS that would continue to add health-related detections.
Apple is currently moving in other terms in the fight against the pandemic, either investing in medical companies or making donations to entities that currently require liquidity to face numerous investigations. For their part, they also help the virus not to spread by complying with safety regulations and making telework prevail. Who knows if perhaps a plan is being managed internally to guide their watch to a rapid detection of patients, but it does not seem feasible that if it occurs it could happen in a short time.