FDA Approves Apple Watch for Sleep Apnea Detection: Here’s How It Works and What Experts Say
The Apple Watch now includes FDA-approved sleep apnea detection—here's how the tool works
It’s the age of personal health technology—from apps to wearable devices, we’re surrounded by tools designed to help us stay healthy. The latest in health tech? Apple Watch’s FDA-approved sleep apnea detection feature. Approved for Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10 and Watch Ultra 2, the feature is intended as an OTC risk assessment tool. However, it’s not a replacement for professional diagnosis. We asked sleep experts for their thoughts on this innovative development.
How does Apple Watch sleep apnea detection work?
Apple’s new health metric,called Breathing Disturbances, uses the watch’s accelerometer to detect “small movements at the wrist associated with interruptions to normal respiratory patterns” during sleep, according to the company. Every 30 days, the Apple Watch analyzes Breathing Disturbance data and alerts users if a pattern of sleep interruptions is detected, encouraging them to seek medical advice.
Woman's World Answers
According to Apple, the Breathing Disturbances feature can also assess sleep quality. The feature may be influenced by factors including alcohol consumption, certain medications and sleep position. Users can monitor their nightly Breathing Disturbances in the Health app, where they are categorized as elevated or not elevated, and data can be viewed over a one-month, six-month, or one-year period. Users can even export a PDF showing three months of breathing data, helping to identify potential sleep apnea symptoms.
Apple’s sleep apnea notification algorithm was developed using advanced machine learning and an extensive data set of clinical-grade sleep apnea tests. The feature was validated in a clinical study, the company says. Every research participant identified by the algorithm had at least mild sleep apnea, according to Apple.
Sleep experts’ opinions on Apple’s new sleep apnea feature
Dr. Swetha Gogineni, a pulmonologist at UCLA Health, explains, “Sleep often goes unaddressed, even though it can contribute to various health issues. The FDA’s approval of this feature increases access to screening tools that might otherwise go unnoticed.”
Apple Watch sleep apnea detection efficacy and limitations
First, a quick recap on sleep apnea: it’s a sleep-related breathing disorder. People with sleep apnea either have a full pause in their breathing (apnea) or a narrowing in their airway (hypopnea) that’s associated with decreases in their oxygen levels or going from a deeper stage of sleep to a lighter stage, explains Dr. Gogineni.
Dr. Kevin Postol, President of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine, adds, “The Apple Watch uses oxygen saturation and pulse data to identify disruptions in breathing—a hallmark of sleep apnea.” However, Dr. Postol also notes the potential for false positives, cautioning that the watch’s data is not diagnostic-grade. “While it may raise awareness, it’s important for users to follow up with a physician for an official diagnosis.”
“The Apple Watch does have some limitations when it comes to detecting symptom alerts for sleep apnea,” says Dr. Postol. “One limitation is the data from the watch may not be of diagnostic quality, which could lead to false positives or unnecessary anxiety for patients.”
On the other hand, he says, if sleep apnea is detected, this might motivate patients to take the initiative to see a physician and get a sleep study for a proper diagnosis.
Another caveat is that this technology also may cause some challenges within our healthcare system, he adds, which may not be fully equipped to handle the increased demand for patients requesting sleep studies for a proper diagnosis.
“While the Apple Watch is certainly a beneficial tool and an additional piece of data, it should be used to help corroborate someone’s symptoms rather than to diagnose sleep apnea,” says Dr. Gogineni. “Currently, the watch provides a notification if it thinks it has enough information to suggest moderate to severe sleep apnea. It’s understandable that they chose this cut off because they are trying to minimize the number of false positives while also detecting patients who are more likely to have sleep apnea and be symptomatic.”
With that being said, the watch could miss people who have only mild sleep apnea but still experience disruptive symptoms, she adds.
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