Kris Carlon / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Samsung is working on ways to detect Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction (LVSD) using the Galaxy Watch.
- It has also conducted trials and received approval from South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS).
- It is also working on EEG devices that strap around the ear and can be used to study drowsiness or increased activity during specific videos, which can eventually be used for hyper-targeted advertising.
Wearables have increasingly been hailed as guardians of human lives. Close-to-medical-grade detection techniques already alert us to certain conditions, even before symptoms progress in the body. While hypertension, sleep apnea, or Atrial Fibrillation can now be commonly detected on smartwatches, AI is enhancing the scope of detection and utility, accelerating detection with fewer data points. With this, Samsung is working on a feature to detect another leading cause of heart failure, right from your wrist.
Samsung has shared its progress with the development of a feature that could detect early signs of heart failure. In a blog post, Samsung states that its wearable products, primarily the Galaxy Watch, will be able to recognize Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction (LVSD). LVSD is a cardiovascular condition characterized by weakened heart muscles that can limit or restrict the heart’s ability to pump sufficient blood for circulation within the body.
LVSD, also known as HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), is believed to cause more than half of the heart failure cases globally. Due to a high fatality rate, an early diagnosis, following detection with a device such as a smartwatch, can reduce hospitalization and the requirements of surgery, and prove life-saving. Samsung is using a specialized AI algorithm to detect LVSD using ECG (electrocardiogram) performed on the Galaxy Watch. This algorithm is developed by Korean healthtech startup, Medical AI, and trained against data from 12-lead ECGs performed in clinical settings.
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The feature has already received approval from South Korea’s Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS). It appears that a dedicated app — AiTiA LVSD-1L — is used to analyze the data. Similarly, attempts have also been made to detect LVSD using ECG data from Apple Watches in multiple clinical research studies. AI has particularly expedited detection and made it easier to obtain definitive results from a single-lead ECG on a smartwatch, which was previously limited to detecting AFib, or Atrial Fibrillation, indicating irregular heartbeats.
Before heading for the FDA’s approval, we can anticipate Samsung to incorporate this functionality into a system app.
Additionally, Samsung has detailed its work on non-invasive devices to detect conditions related to the brain. It has collaborated with the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Hanyang University in Seoul to develop an EEG (or electroencephalogram) device that straps around the ear.
The current prototype has been evaluated to detect drowsiness, an application that could be useful in instances such as driving. The device has also been tested to detect fondness for specific videos by detecting brain activity when it is played. Samsung suggests this technology could be used for highly targeted marketing.
Samsung hasn’t commented on the availability in a commercially viable product, though an upcoming generation of Galaxy Buds could be the perfect candidates for this tech. Given that it is still in the prototyping stage, we might not see it arrive on actual Samsung devices before the LVSD detection.
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