AliveCor’s FDA-approved KardiaBand EKG reader could be used with the Apple Watch to detect high levels of potassium in the bloodstream.
The company, which cooperated with the Mayo Clinic for two studies, noted that the KardiaBand device could be used to detect both high levels of potassium as well as atrial fibrillation.
For the potassium study, AliveCor used more than 2 million EKGs from the Mayo Clinic from 1994 to 2017 paired with four million serum potassium values and data from an AliveCor smartphone EKG device to create an algorithm that can successfully detect hyperkalemia, aka high potassium, with a sensitivity range between 91 and 94 percent.
High potassium can function as a sign of several concerning health conditions, like congestive heart failure, chronic kidney disease, and diabetes, and it can also be detected due to the medications used to treat these conditions. Per AliveCor, hyperkalemia is generally asymptomatic and often goes undetected.
AliveCor has stated that the AI developed through the study could be incorporated into its KardiaBand product, which would then be paired with the Apple Watch to allow patients to keep on eye on their health.
For the Cleveland Clinic study, cardiologists aimed to determine whether KardiaBand for Apple Watch could differentiate between atrial fibrillation and a normal heart rhythm. The researchers discovered that the KardiaBand was able to successfully detect Afib at an accuracy level comparable to physicians interpreting the same EKGs. The Kardia algorithm was able to correctly interpret atrial fibrillation with 93 percent sensitivity and 94 percent specificity. Sensitivity increased to 99 percent with a physician review of the KardiaBand recordings.
The KardiaBand has been available since late 2017 and retails for $199. The device also requires a subscription to the AliveCor premium service, which goes for $99 per year.
Each subscription account, paired with SmartRhythm notifications, allows for unlimited EKG readings, detection of atrial fibrillation or normal sinus rhythm, and unlimited cloud history and reporting of all EKGs.
Via MacRumors