In a groundbreaking study, Apple Watch helps patients with atrial fibrillation avoid blood thinners

by Junna Base November 8, 2024

A Pittsburgh hospital has become the latest medical center to take part in a groundbreaking Apple Watch trial in the US that will help patients with atrial fibrillation avoid blood-thinning medications.

The REACT-AF study began in July 2023 and is led by researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine. Randomized patients (half of all participants) wear an Apple Watch paired with an iPhone pre-programmed to monitor irregular heart rhythms for 14 hours a day.

If patients go more than 30 days without an episode of irregular heartbeats lasting more than an hour, they may stop taking their anticoagulant medications.

It’s a study that could transform cardiovascular health care, reducing the risk of medication-related complications and saving a lot of money in the process.

Apple is breaking new ground in the healthcare sector

(Image credit: Future)

Allegheny General Hospital recently announced that it is among the top study enrollment sites in the nation, and its principal investigator is full of praise for the initiative.

“The purpose of this study is to better understand how to personalize anticoagulation safely and effectively, particularly in patients with isolated episodes of atrial fibrillation,” noted Dr. Amit Thosani and pointed out that the prescription of blood thinners to reduce the risk of stroke in atrial fibrillation patients is also associated with increased risk of internal bleeding.

As noted, monitored patients can stop taking blood thinners if they go 30 days without an episode, a benefit that Arthur Schiebel of Pittsburgh felt keenly. “I’m not used to taking all this stuff,” he told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, “I just want to get off all this medication.”

After two years of treatment to control atrial fibrillation, Thosani took part in the REACT-AF trial and said he had been off his blood-thinning medication since February “without any problems.” “I’ve never worn a watch in my life, but if this thing keeps me off the medication, I’ll wear it,” he said.

Afib tracking is just one of the Apple Watch’s health features, recently bolstered by the introduction of sleep apnea detection on the top Apple Watch models, the Apple Watch Series 10 and Series 9, and the Apple Watch Ultra 2. With features like the With fall and accident detection, Apple Watch is quickly becoming an essential health monitoring tool that can help prevent illness and injury to the wearer.