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Setup of Consumer Wearable Devices for Exposure and Health Monitoring in Population Studies
Published on: February 3, 2023
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COVID-19 surveillance based on consumer wearable devices
Chunbo Zhang1, Aijun Sun2, Jiping Liao1
1Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Peking University First Hospital, Beijing, China.
Digital Health
|April 26, 2024
Summary
Consumer wearable devices can monitor COVID-19 severity by tracking heart rate and heart rate variability. These physiological parameters indicate disease progression and recovery, aiding in communicable disease surveillance.
Area of Science:
- Digital Health
- Infectious Disease Surveillance
- Wearable Technology
Background:
- Consumer wearable devices show promise for monitoring communicable diseases.
- Wearable technology offers a novel approach to public health surveillance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the efficacy of wearable devices in monitoring patients with COVID-19.
- To assess the ability of wearable devices to differentiate COVID-19 severity.
Main Methods:
- Collected physiological data from wearable devices and electronic questionnaires from 98 COVID-19 patients.
- Categorized patients into milder (no pneumonia) and more severe (pneumonia) groups based on imaging.
- Compared physiological parameter trends between the two groups.
Main Results:
- More severe COVID-19 cases exhibited higher heart rate parameters and lower heart rate variability (HRV).
- Heart rate parameters trended downwards in the severe group post-fever resolution.
- Resting and sleep heart rates in severe cases approached milder group levels one week post-discharge.
Conclusions:
- Consumer wearables can effectively monitor respiratory infections like COVID-19.
- Heart rate parameters from wearables are sensitive indicators of COVID-19 severity and disease evolution.
