Continuous Heart Monitor Watch Improves AF Screening

A physician-prescribed wearable solution provides continuous cardiac monitoring to detect atrial fibrillation (AF) on demand during the day, and automatically overnight.

The Livmor (Frisco, TX, USA) Halo AF Detection System is a wearable solution that consists of a proprietary algorithm that filters and detects irregular pulse rhythm suggestive of AF from photoplethysmograph (PPG) data, a patient user interface that notifies the patient of data collection, and a physician user interface that alerts when an irregular pulse rhythm is detected. Device software interfaces with the LIVMOR Halo+ Home Monitoring System and a compatible Samsung (Seoul, Korea) Halo smartwatch to capture PPG data and sync to servers.

During the night, the Halo watch intermittently monitors for irregular heart rhythm via the Halo+ Home Monitoring System while the user is at rest. PPG signals recorded by the Halo Watch are subsequently analyzed when WiFi connectivity is available. The recording session signal is first assessed for quality before being analyzed. If a signal is suggestive of AF is detected, it is flagged for physician review in the Linvmor HeartView physician portal. In recent clinical studies, The Halo was 100% sensitive and 93% specific in identifying AF.

“Our Halo AF detection algorithms, deployed as an integrated part of the Livmor Halo+ Home Monitoring system, serves as a foundational cornerstone in our Samsung-based digital health platform,” said Ken Persen, founder and CEO of Livmor. “Starting today, medical professionals across the US can prescribe our Livmor Halo, a patient-engaging and extendable system, to their at-risk patients. This is major step toward achieving our vision of a transformative patient-provider ecosystem that more proactively prevents, detects, and manages chronic conditions.”

“With the increased need for remote care and monitoring, Samsung is committed to working with strategic partners to develop innovative digital health solutions,” said Taher Behbehani, general manager and head of mobile B2B at Samsung Electronics America. “We are thrilled that Livmors’s secure AF detection monitor on Samsung wearables has achieved this significant milestone, helping clinicians reach even more patients with potentially life-saving technology.”

As the heart pumps blood to the periphery of the body, a pressure pulse is created which distends the arteries and arterioles in the subcutaneous tissue. The change in volume caused by the pressure pulse is detected by illuminating the skin with a light-emitting diode (LED) and then measuring the amount of light either transmitted or reflected to a photodiode, thus generating a PPG.