With a newly available smartwatch feature, Apple has thrust itself into the screening process for many people with hypertension, one of the most widespread and stubborn chronic conditions.Â
Over the last decade, Apple has gradually expanded its arsenal of features that alert users of dangerous health conditions. In 2018, it launched a feature that could spot possible atrial fibrillation, an irregular heart rhythm affecting about six million mostly older Americans who are less likely to use an Apple Watch. In 2024, the company veered into detection for sleep apnea, a disorder affecting some 30 million adults.
Apple’s new feature flagging hypertension tackles a problem of much greater scale: About half of American adults, or 120 million people, have high blood pressure, classified as 130/80 mmHg and above. Many of them have no idea and don’t do anything about it until it leads to a serious health condition like cardiovascular disease. Hypertension can cause heart attacks and kidney disease; increasing evidence also suggests a link to dementia. Apple expects to alert over one million people with undiagnosed hypertension in the first year alone.
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