Apple Watch will soon let doctors remotely monitor patients as they age — here’s what experts think (CNBC.com)
The Apple Watch can help doctors monitor aging patients
The company says it can now monitor “functional capacity.”
That might not mean a lot to consumers, but it’s very important for doctors across a wide range of specialties.
Apple introduced a slew of new features for its Apple Watch this week, ranging from sleep tracking to hand-washing reminders, most of which were targeted to all consumers.
All except for one: An update to its motion sensors that is designed to help the clinicians monitor patients’ remotely as they age. Apple shared in a news release that the watch and iPhone can now track low-range cardio fitness, walking speed, double support time, step length and six-minute walk distance, among other metrics. The data will be available in the Health app in the fall.
Apple has described the metrics as “validated” because it compares them in internal studies to the gold standard for measurement.
The company said that, because of these updates, it now has a way to track “functional (aerobic) capacity” through the Apple Watch. That m...
