Apple has published a new clinical validation summary document that explains how its new sleep apnea detection feature works on Apple Watch.Sleep apnea monitoring is part of Apple Watch Series 10 and comes to Apple Watch Ultra 2 and Apple Watch Series 9 with watchOS 11.The new watch hardware launches on Friday, and watchOS 11 is available now.
A common point of interest is what sensor Apple Watch uses for detecting signs of sleep apnea.Apple Watch users the 3-axis gyroscope to detect disturbances in breathing while sleep tracking.The blood oxygen sensor, which is disabled on newer watches in the US but otherwise available worldwide, is not used.
Support for monitoring and providing alerts when signs of sleep apnea are detected is a feature that requires regulatory approval in regions where offered.As promised, Apple received the necessary approval for its accelerometer-based breathing disturbance monitoring in the US.In other words, you don’t just have to take Apple’s word for it that this method works.
The newly published documentation goes into more detail about how Apple’s approved sleep apnea detection feature works: The full document contains more information about how sleep data was collected, the feature’s clinical validation, relevant references, and more.Check it out here.Already have an Apple Watch Series 9 or Ultra 2? You can start collecting the neccesary sleep data tonight.
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