{
  "id": 18528893,
  "title": "AI-powered smartwatch detects high blood pressure with sensitivity similar to office screening",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/06/ai-powered-smartwatch-detects-high-blood-pressure-with-sensitivity",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-11-06T16:00:04.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Medical Xpress",
    "slug": "medical-xpress",
    "url": "https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-11-ai-powered-smartwatch-high-blood.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A new AI-powered smartwatch has been shown to detect high blood pressure with accuracy similar to traditional office-based blood pressure screenings, according to a study published in Nature. Researchers found that the system, which uses optical and motion signals from a Google smartwatch, had a sensitivity of 65.8% for detecting hypertension, compared to 55.3% for traditional screenings. Both methods also had equal specificities, avoiding false positives in 90% of cases. The smartwatch system correctly identified more cases of hypertension than office-based monitoring but the difference was not statistically significant. While the system cannot replace traditional cuff-based blood pressure monitoring, it could serve as a valuable tool for early detection, potentially reducing cardiovascular events.",
  "summary": "Smartwatches may be able to detect hypertension (high blood pressure) with the help of an artificial intelligence (AI) system that interprets sensor readings, a paper in Nature reports. Tests of the system, trialed using a consumer smartwatch, show that it can detect hypertension at similar sensitivities to traditional office-based blood pressure screening methods.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}