The American Academy of Neurology has issued new guidance on wearable devices and digital apps as potential tools in neurological care, focusing on non-FDA-cleared technology. Although aimed at neurologists, the information and guidance can also be helpful for anyone working with older adults, and for older adults themselves. Active-aging community leaders may want to do educational programming around the potential strengths and limitations of the devices.

Among the key points:

- Wearables can monitor physical activity, sleep, heart rate and other health factors. Some can detect conditions like atrial fibrillation. Others can monitor disease-specific symptoms like seizures and headaches.

- The technology has great potential to help with disease management and provide more complete data for people with neurological diseases and disorders.

- Limitations include the potential for inaccurate readings and unintended effects, such as increased anxiety.

- Further research is needed to improve the accuracy and reliability of wearable technology, and to explore its role in developing personalized therapies for neurological conditions.

“While these consumer devices may provide useful data for neurological conditions, some important issues remain like making sure people are using them for the appropriate amount of time and have an understanding of their limitations such as producing falsely alarming or falsely reassuring results," said guidance author Sarah M. Benish, MD, of the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.

For heart rate and cardiac arrhythmia, the article says smart watches and smart electrocardiogram devices can serve as screening tools to help detect conditions like atrial fibrillation, which is linked to an increased risk of stroke -- but additional medical testing may be needed to confirm diagnosis. For some people, alerts from wearable devices may cause anxiety.

For monitoring sleep, the article says wearable devices have advanced rapidly with wristbands, rings and headbands that use a wide range of technologies to assess sleep duration and sleep stages. A limitation is that physicians may not have access to all the sleep data. Despite challenges, the authors see broader use of wearables since they are affordable and can monitor a person’s sleep at home.

The article also provides specific guidance on the use of wearables for headache and for epilepsy, among other conditions.

To download the full article, published in Neurology, click here