Apple has expanded the Apple Watch’s sleep apnea detection feature to several more countries in Asia, Europe, South America, and other regions of the world.
Sleep apnea detection and notifications have expanded to the following areas:
Sleep Apnea detection is now available on the Apple Watch Series 9, Apple Watch Series 10, and Apple Watch Ultra 2 in more than 150 countries around the world. The feature uses the Apple Watch’s accelerometer to record wrist movements associated with interruptions in normal breathing patterns during sleep. Apple Watch users have to wear the watch for several nights in a row to get an initial reading.
Sleep apnea is a potentially serious health disorder where a person experiences repetitive pauses in breathing, periods of shallow breathing, or collapse of the upper airway during sleep results in poor ventilation and sleep disruption. Each pause in breathing can last from a few seconds to a few minutes and usually occurs numerous times per night. A choking or snorting sound may occur as breathing resumes. Common sleep apnea symptoms include daytime sleepiness, snoring, and non restful sleep despite adequate sleep time. Other symptoms can include a frustrated spouse, which is how I found out that I might have sleep apnea. Happily there are treatments for sleep apnea, including the use of a CPAP machine and mask, which uses a stream of humidified air to keep the user’s airway open.
Apple is also expanding AFib History, ECGs, and Irregular Heart Rhythm Notifications to a few more areas.
ECG readings and Irregular Rhythm Notifications are now available in Argentina, Costa Rica, and Serbia, while AFib history is now available in Argentina and Serbia.
The Apple Watch’s ECG feature can detect atrial fibrillation, low heart rates, and high heart rates. Irregular Heart Rhythm notifications are meant to detect high heart rates, low heart rates, or irregular heart rhythms. These problems can be indicators of health issues.
Apple maintains a list of Apple Watch feature availability on its website.
(Via MacRumors)