AzTrials
AzTrials

HealthyHRMNCT02697214

Accuracy of Commercially Available Heart Rate Monitors

A study testing Fitbit Charge HR, Apple Watch and Mio Fuse in people with Healthy, run by The Cleveland Clinic.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

Over the last two decades, there has been a proliferation of commercially available heart rate monitors. Recognizing that elite athletes often use heart rate to monitor training and assess aerobic fitness, fitness companies have offered a variety of heart rate monitoring systems to the general public. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
Conditions the study is for
Healthy
What is being tested?
Fitbit Charge HR, Apple Watch and Mio Fuse
Type of treatment
Medical device
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
50 participants
Where
No sites listed yet
Study dates
Aug 2015to Jan 2016
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 years and older
  • All sexes
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Age > 18 years
  • Able and willing to exercise (walk/jog) for a total of fifteen minutes

Who cannot join

  • Health issues that preclude or contraindicate walking and/or jogging, including cardiovascular, orthopedic, pulmonary and other conditions
  • Presence of a cardiac pacemaker
  • Known cardiovascular disease
  • Known heart rhythm disorders
  • Use of Beta-blockers or antiarrhythmic medications
  • Tattoos around the wrist area

About this study

Official title: Accuracy of Commercially Available Heart Rate Monitors: A Prospective Study

Over the last two decades, there has been a proliferation of commercially available heart rate monitors. Recognizing that elite athletes often use heart rate to monitor training and assess aerobic fitness, fitness companies have offered a variety of heart rate monitoring systems to the general public. Recently, there has been a move from monitors that rely on chest straps to measure electrical activity toward more convenient, wrist-worn monitors that employ optical sensing technology similar to that used for pulse oximetry. While the accuracy of chest strap monitors has been assessed in a variety of studies, there is no data concerning the accuracy of wrist-worn heart rate monitors. Assessment of the monitors' accuracy is important both for the subjects who rely upon these monitors to guide their athletic activity and for the physicians to whom these individuals report their heart rate readings.

Read the detailed description

Physicians have long-used heart rate as an index of aerobic fitness and cardiovascular health. Resting heart rate has been linked to longevity and freedom from cardiovascular morbidity, and heart rate during exercise serves as a measure of aerobic capacity. In addition, heart rate recovery after exercise carries implications for an individuals' health.

Like physicians, coaches and athletic trainers employ heart rate measurement on a daily basis. In the athletic setting, heart rate during exercise is used as an indication of aerobic exertion. Elite athletes and their coaches often design workouts based upon achieved and targeted heart rates.

Once the province of physicians and elite athletes, heart rate monitoring has become widespread among the general public. In the nineteen eighties, fitness companies added heart rate monitors to their product lines. Systems employing a chest strap to monitor electrical activity, telemetry and a wrist-borne receiver became popular, and several controlled, scientific studies confirmed their accuracy.

More recently, manufacturers have marketed a new class of heart rate monitors that consist solely of wristwatch-style devices. These heart rate monitors use optical sensing technology to measure heart rate. While they offer convenience, their accuracy, particularly during exercise, is uncertain. A recent article in USA Today suggests that these wrist-worn monitors fail to provide accurate readings during exercise; however, to date there has been no rigorous scientific inquiry addressing this question.

The purpose of this study is to assess the accuracy of four popular, commercially available wrist-worn heart rate monitors under conditions of varying physical exertion.

Conditions
Healthy
Being tested
Fitbit Charge HR, Apple Watch, Mio Fuse, Basis Peak
Keywords
commercial heart rate monitors, accuracy, ECG, varying degrees of exertion

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Fitbit Charge HRDevice

    Fitbit Charge HR heart rate monitoring device compared to ECG and Polar H7

  • Apple WatchDevice

    Apple Watch heart rate monitoring device compared to ECG and Polar H7

  • Mio FuseDevice

    Mio Fuse heart rate monitoring device compared to ECG and Polar H7

  • Basis PeakDevice

    Basis Peak heart rate monitoring device compared to ECG and Polar H7

Study groups in NCT02697214
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Apple WatchActive comparatorApple Watch heart rate monitoring device worn with standard ECG, Polar H7 chest monitor and one other wrist monitoring device .
Receives: Device: Apple Watch
Fitbit Charge HRActive comparatorFitbit Charge HR heart rate monitoring device worn with standard ECG, Polar H7 chest monitor and one other wrist monitoring device.
Receives: Device: Fitbit Charge HR
Mio FuseActive comparatorMio Fuse heart rate monitoring device worn with standard ECG, Polar H7 chest monitor and one other wrist monitoring device.
Receives: Device: Mio Fuse
Basis PeakActive comparatorBasis Peak heart rate monitoring device worn with standard ECG, Polar H7 chest monitor and one other wrist monitoring device.
Receives: Device: Basis Peak

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Measuring the Accuracy of Commercial Heart Rate Monitors.

    The purpose of this study is to assess the accuracy of four popular, commercially available wrist-worn heart rate monitors compared to the current gold standard of a ECG using Lin's Concordance Correlation Coefficient.

    Measured: 20 minutes

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted3 Mar 2016 (estimated)
  2. Study startAug 2015
  3. Primary completionJan 2016
  4. Study completionJan 2016

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Screening
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Factorial
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
50 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT02697214
Sponsor's protocol ID
15-718
Acronym
HRM
Status last verified
Feb 2019
First submitted
24 Feb 2016
Last updated
11 Feb 2019
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Fitbit Charge HR, Apple Watch and Mio Fuse in people with Healthy, run by The Cleveland Clinic.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 2 inclusion and 6 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 11 Feb 2019. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 11 Feb 2019). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Measuring the Accuracy of Commercial Heart Rate Monitors. (time frame: 20 minutes). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 11 Feb 2019.

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