Google asks FDA to clear Fitbit for passive heart rhythm monitoring

Google submitted data for a new Fitbit feature that would passively monitor users' heart rhythms to the Food and Drug Administration, the company announced today.

Fitbit currently can only check for irregular heart rhythm periodically; users have to actively decide to take a reading. The new feature would run in the background and alert people if they're showing signs of a condition called atrial fibrillation. It'd bring Fitbit's EKG feature closer to the one on the Apple Watch, which checks the wearer's heart rhythms on occasion and alerts them if it catches any irregularities.

Fitbit launched a study in 2020 to test its passive heart rhythm technology. Nearly half a million Fitbit users participated in the study, and it flagged...

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