Apple Watch's Sleep Apnea Detection Feature Receives FDA Clearance

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today published clearance of sleep apnea detection on newer Apple Watch models, as reported by TechCrunch.

sleep apnea detection apple watch
Sleep apnea is a potentially serious disorder in which a person's breathing repeatedly stops and starts while they sleep.

Apple last week announced that sleep apnea detection would be available on the Apple Watch Series 10, Apple Watch Series 9, and Apple Watch Ultra 2 in the U.S. and more than 150 other countries and regions later this month. Apple's fine print says the feature is intended to detect signs of moderate to severe sleep apnea for people 18 years old or older who have not already been diagnosed with sleep apnea.

The sleep apnea detection feature uses the Apple Watch's accelerometer to "monitor small movements at the wrist that are associated with interruptions in normal respiratory patterns," according to Apple. If these disturbances occur frequently over multiple nights, they may be associated with sleep apnea, according to Apple.

Apple Watch users can view their nightly Breathing Disturbances in the Health app on the iPhone, with disturbances classified as "elevated" or "not elevated."

Apple says the feature was developed using "advanced machine learning" and an "extensive data set of clinical-grade sleep apnea tests," and then validated in a "clinical study."

Apple Watch Series 10 launches on Friday.

Related Forum: Apple Watch

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 18

Apple Announces iOS 18.2 Launching Today With These New Features

Wednesday December 11, 2024 5:23 am PST by
Apple has announced that iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, and macOS Sequoia 15.2 will be released today following more than six weeks of beta testing. For the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models, the update introduces additional Apple Intelligence features, including Genmoji for creating custom emoji, Image Playground and Image Wand for generating images, and ChatGPT integration for Siri. There is also ...
Generic iOS 18

Apple Seeds Second Release Candidate Versions of iOS 18.2 and More With Genmoji, Image Playground and ChatGPT Integration

Monday December 9, 2024 10:06 am PST by
Apple today seeded the second release candidate versions of upcoming iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, and macOS 15.2 updates to developers and public beta testers for testing purposes, a week after releasing the first RCs. The first iOS 18.2 RC had a build number of 22C150, while the second RC's build number is 22C151. Release candidates represent the final version of beta software that's expected to see a ...
iPhone SE 4 Single Camera Thumb 3

iPhone SE 4 Said to Feature 48MP Rear Lens, 12MP TrueDepth Camera

Monday December 9, 2024 4:48 am PST by
Apple's forthcoming iPhone SE 4 will feature a single 48-megapixel rear camera and a 12-megapixel TrueDepth camera on the front, according to details revealed in a new Korean supply chain report. ET News reports that Korea-based LG Innotek is the main supplier of the front and rear camera modules for the more budget-friendly ~$400 device, which is expected to launch in the first quarter of...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

MacBook Pros With OLED Displays Won't Have a Notch, Roadmap Shows

Monday December 9, 2024 7:36 am PST by
Apple plans to remove the notch from the MacBook Pro in a few years from now, according to a roadmap shared by research firm Omdia. The roadmap shows that 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models released in 2026 will have a hole-punch camera at the top of the display, instead of a notch. It is unclear if there would simply be a pinhole in the display, or if Apple would expand the iPhone's...
vipps nfc tap to pay iphone

World's First Apple Pay Alternative for iPhone Launches in Norway

Monday December 9, 2024 1:28 am PST by
Norwegian payment service Vipps has become the world's first company to launch a competing tap-to-pay solution to Apple Pay on iPhone, following Apple's agreement with European regulators to open up its NFC technology to third parties. Starting December 9, Vipps users in Norway can make contactless payments in stores using their iPhones. The service initially supports customers of SpareBank...
New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18

20 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.2

Friday December 6, 2024 4:42 am PST by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.2 in the second week of December, bringing the second round of Apple Intelligence features to iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 models. This update brings several major advancements to Apple's AI integration, including completely new image generation tools and a range of Visual Intelligence-based enhancements. There are a handful of new non-AI related feature controls...
Apple Watch Series 10 lineup 240909 feature

Apple Watch Could Get Blood Pressure Monitoring in 2025

Tuesday December 10, 2024 11:51 am PST by
Apple is ramping up work on a blood pressure monitoring feature for the Apple Watch and it could be ready as soon as 2025, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Blood pressure monitoring is a health addition that Apple has been working on for the last several years, and based on rumors, Apple wanted to debut it in 2024. The feature would not provide exact systolic and diastolic blood pressure...
macOS Sequoia Night Feature

Apple Releases macOS Sequoia 15.2 With New Apple Intelligence Features

Wednesday December 11, 2024 10:02 am PST by
Apple today released macOS Sequoia 15.2, the second update to the macOS Sequoia operating system that was released in September. macOS Sequoia 15.2 comes over a month after the release of macOS Sequoia 15.1. Mac users can download the ‌macOS Sequoia‌ update through the Software Update section of System Settings. macOS Sequoia 15.2 adds Image Playground, an app that lets you create...

Top Rated Comments

Godspeed8230 Avatar
12 weeks ago

Why can't this be on the Series 9?
Well, it is.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SodaFountain Avatar
12 weeks ago
There is absolutely no good reason for this feature to not be included on the Gen 1 Ultra. Especially when you consider the Gen 1 has an additional SP02 sensor.
Beyond unacceptable. We should start a petition.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AccenT Avatar
12 weeks ago
Why can't this be on the Series 9?

Edit: actually seems it will. Good news!
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Crzyrio Avatar
12 weeks ago

Additional is the wrong word indeed. All I meant is that it had its oxygen sensor enabled. My point is that it’s just as capable, if not more capable.
Can you provide a legitimate reason as to why this feature isn’t coming to the Ultra 1?
The S9 is a big upgrade from the S8 from my understating
- 30% Faster
- Updates to GPU/CUP + Added NPU
- S8 was based of the A13 7nm architecture
- S9 is based of the A15 5nm architecture

It's chip is also the reason why the S9 supports on device Siri, advanced cycle tracking, finger tap gesture etc
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jz0309 Avatar
12 weeks ago

This should also be on series 7 which also has the blood oxygen sensor!!
It’s based on accelerometer data, not blood oxygen
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Obioban Avatar
12 weeks ago

Additional is the wrong word indeed. All I meant is that it had its oxygen sensor enabled. My point is that it’s just as capable, if not more capable.
Can you provide a legitimate reason as to why this feature isn’t coming to the Ultra 1?
Ultra 1 doesn't have the neural engine. This is almost certainly running on the neural engine.

Ultra 1 basically had a 4 year old SoC when it launched-- S9 was the first meaningful update in years.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)