SAFER Wearables Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A study of the acceptability and performance of wearables for atrial fibrillation screening in older adults
IRAS ID
283812
Contact name
Peter H Charlton
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Cambridge
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 1 months, 31 days
Research summary
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is an irregular heart rhythm which causes a five-fold increase in the risk of stroke. If AF is recognised then the risk of stroke can be reduced by taking tablets regularly. However, AF is not recognised in many people (approximately 425,000 in England), meaning that they live with an increased risk of stroke. Therefore, it is important to find ways to identify AF more reliably.
Recently, wearable devices have been developed which could be useful for identifying AF. Several devices allow you to monitor your heart activity in daily life, including wristbands, smart watches and chest-patch monitors. The aim of this study is to assess the acceptability and performance of wearables for use in AF screening in elderly subjects.
We (researchers at the University of Cambridge) will invite selected people from the East of England who have previously participated in the SAFER Programme to participate in this study. We will invite 130 SAFER participants to also participate in this study: 65 without AF, and 65 with AF. Everyone who participates will be aged 65 or older.
Participants will be asked to wear three devices for seven days: a wristband, a watch, and a chest patch. These devices will collect measurements of their heart’s activity. We will also ask participants to tell us how they found wearing the devices by completing a questionnaire. We will investigate how participants found wearing each device, and how accurately each device can be used to identify AF. The study will provide evidence to determine whether wearable devices could be useful for identifying AF in daily life.
The study is funded by the British Heart Foundation.
REC name
East Midlands - Leicester Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/EM/0255
Date of REC Opinion
19 Nov 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion