MedPage Today January 22, 2026
Dutch trial establishes feasibility of screening approach in routine specialty care
Key Takeaways
- A Dutch trial evaluated 6 months of Afib screening in a high-risk, older population using Apple Watches, which have both photoplethysmography and electrocardiography functionality.
- The intervention significantly increased the detection of new-onset Afib and shortened the time to diagnosis compared with standard specialty care.
- The 6-month intervention also showed that prolonged smartwatch screening was feasible to identify undiagnosed Afib in high-risk patients.
Smartwatches beat standard cardiology care when it came to detecting atrial fibrillation (Afib, or AF) in a high-risk population, the Dutch EQUAL trial found.
Among older people with elevated stroke risk, Apple Watch screening turned up new-onset Afib in 9.6% within 180 days...
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