The Apple Watch on your wrist can, in the right circumstances, serve as an important medical monitoring tool. According to MyHealthyApple and MacRumors, Apple-funded Stanford researchers found that the Apple Watch can accurately measure the frailty (or rather the distance covered in a six-minute walk) of patients with cardiovascular disease at home. According to Stanford’s study, personal smartwatch use was almost as good as a clinical test.
Scientists collected the data using the Apple Watch Series 3 and a specially designed VascTrac app, but the third-party software is unlikely to be needed in the future. WatchOS 7 contains the 6-minute walk test and other mobility data. You can check your performance in the Health app on your iPhone (on the Browse tab under Respiratory).
The results suggest that the Apple Watch and other smartwatches could save patients the hassle of seeing a doctor to measure their functionality. They could just walk around their homes and come in when there are signs of problems. This clearly helps Apple continue to showcase its wristwear as a health device, but it also points to a future where the technology you already own will be enough to provide doctors with a wealth of useful information.