Cardiogram, maker of a smartwatch app that uses deep neural network technology to detect various heart conditions, has inked a deal with Fitbit allowing its application to be integrated with the tech giant’s wearables. 

As part of the integration Fitbit users can now download the Cardiogram app and use it to monitor heart rate and sleep tracking. Users will also have access to Cardiogram’s detection technology, which has been validated in identifying hypertension, sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation. 

Following this announcement Fitbit users can also upgrade to the Cardiogram Premium version, which will give them the ability to share their data, insights and tests with family or a clinician. 

In the past Cardiogram has had a focus on validation. Among these efforts has been its continued work with University of California, San Francisco on studies related to heart health, including the Health eHeart Study, which found that the technology was able to detect hypertension and sleep apnea when employed on an Apple Watch. This integration opens the door for Fitbit users to now become part of those studies. 

“In a sequence of studies with UCSF's Cardiology department, Cardiogram has shown that optical heart rate sensors, when combined with a deep neural network, can accurately detect multiple major health conditions including diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea and atrial fibrillation,” Brandon Ballinger, CEO and founder of Cardiogram, wrote in an email to MobiHealthNews. “As part of the launch, Fitbit users may opt-in to join Cardiogram's research study with UCSF Cardiology. With the accurate 24-7 heart rate data from Fitbit wearables, Cardiogramcan make its algorithm more accurate and potentially save lives, by helping users at elevated risk of certain health conditions and guiding them to condition management.”

WHY IT MATTERS

The new integration opens up the application to more users. It also lets the technology train on a grander scale. 

“Over 1 million people have downloaded the Cardiogram app, representing over 102,000,000,0000 heartbeats per day. These beats contain a wealth of information related to sleep, stress, fitness, and medical conditions like sleep apnea, atrial fibrillation, hypertension, or diabetes. Compatibility with Fitbit, Wear OS, and Garmin enables even more people to learn what their heart is telling them,” according to a Cardiogram blog post. 

THE LARGER TREND

Cardiogram’s first integration was with Apple Watches, but it also announced a Garmin integration last August. 

The company has been rolling out a slew of new partnerships and agreements recently. In April it announced that it cut a deal with Oscar Health. As part of the new agreement, Oscar Health members will be able to enter their insurance information and then download the Cardiogram app. While the Cardiogram app is free to download, Oscar members will be able to access Cardiogram Care within the app without a copay or deductible. 

ON THE RECORD

“For the past decade, Fitbit has made simple and engaging health and wellness solutions accessible to millions of people, helping them make the behavior change that leads to better health outcomes. Building on our success in helping people reach their health goals, we continue to work to tackle some of the most common and costly conditions in healthcare,” Adam Pellegrini, general manager of Fitbit Health Solutions, said in a statement. “Partnering with Cardiogram to add a health condition screening tool further enhances our growing platform of technology-enabled solutions to help Fitbit users proactively manage their health.”