Sleep Apnea on Apple Watch: Get Notifications on Breathing Disorders

Published on October 1, 2024

Apple recently introduced a new health feature that allows you to track sleep apnea via the Apple Watch. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has already approved the function for monitoring apnea. The background.

Over 900 million people worldwide unfortunately suffer from sleep apnea. The disease causes breathing to stop briefly during sleep. This robs those affected of sleep and can cause significant health problems in the long term. In Germany alone, there are around 26 million people who suffer from sleep apnea. At the beginning of September 2024, Apple therefore introduced a new health feature for the Apple Watch.

Receive notifications about sleep apnea on the Apple Watch

With watchOS 11, you can track your breathing on the Apple Watch. The Health app contains measurements of "breathing disorders". It uses the Apple Watch's accelerometer to detect small movements of the wrist.

These are related to the interruption of normal breathing patterns. The Apple Watch records the data and analyzes it for 30 days at a time. If the device detects consistent signs of moderate to severe sleep apnea, you will receive a notification.

This allows those affected to talk to doctors about next steps such as diagnosis and treatment. To support this, you can export the results as a PDF. The document shows, among other things, data on breathing disorders over the past three months and when sleep apnea may have occurred.

How to receive notifications about your sleep behavior

If you want to record your sleep behavior, you must wear your Apple Watch when you go to bed. To use the function, first open the Health app on your iPhone. Then tap your profile icon at the top. Via the health checklist, go to the "Sleep apnea notifications" tab and then "Configure". Now follow the instructions displayed.

To check the data on breathing disorders, go to "Discover" in the Health app. Then tap "Respiratory system" and then "Breathing disorders" to receive all available information.

According to Apple, the algorithm for notifications about sleep apnea was developed using advanced machine learning and a comprehensive dataset from clinical-level sleep apnea tests. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has now officially approved the function.

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But it's not just users of the new Apple Watch Series 10 who can use it. The Apple Watch Series 9 and the Watch Ultra 2 also have access to the function as soon as watchOS 11 is running on them. If undetected, sleep apnea can lead to serious heart problems, dementia and other complications. Some sufferers fall asleep at night during the day.

Diabetes and high blood pressure are also among the consequences. Loud snoring can also be a symptom. However, the FDA emphasizes that the new function is not a diagnostic tool, but an application on a device that is available for sale.

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Source: Basicthinking.de