Sp02 Sensor Accuracy

[SunsetRunner]

A youtuber with diagnosed sleep apnea tests the accuracy of Fitbit on himself and on a healthy person without sleep apnea.

At the same time he tested it together with a medically "sleep apnea monitoring machine" that showed several incidents of sleep apnea. On Fitbit no sleep apnea was displayed.

The healthy friend had incidents of sleep apnea according to Fitbit.

At the end he couldn't tell if the sensor is accurate because the results were bad and couldn't recommend it. He was impressed by the watch anyway but.... not about the sensor.

Fitbit puts this functionality behind a subscription.......

[JohnnyRow]

If it was on youtube, then it has to be true, right?  After all, youtube is part of the internet.

[Lasertop]

Now I agree that YouTube posters aren't scientists and what they say should be taken with a grain of salt, however, are there any independent studies that prove that the Fitbit watches can accurately detect sleep apnea?

[SunsetRunner]

You could have at least give it some credit that that YouTuber tried it. As I said, he really liked the product and recommended it. He just tested it on several days and even shows graphs of it and in relation to a medically approved machine.

He didn't say it was right or wrong. He said that the results don't seem to be right since he suffers from sleep apnea but Fitbit showed no indication at all about it.

He wished that they would improve and at least present and break the data a bit better because at that point he didn't know what to believe as far as this sensor is concerned.

You answered like a grandfather from the 40's. The deny of the unknown. Or you're just a blind fanboy.

[SunsetRunner]

Lasertop you're right. Let's say we don't believe that youtuber for his effort to test the accuracy of the SpO2 Sensor and that his results are totally wrong.

Since Fitbit puts the SpO2 sensor sleep-data on subscription, it would be ultra nice if they showed actual results to prove the dependability. It would be considered biased of course since it would be funded from the company itself. But something is better than nothing.

[Rich_Laue]

Did the youtuber really test the unreleased Fotbit Sense?

Does this youtuber understand that Fitbit only displays the variation with no scale or a true O2 measurement?

[SunsetRunner]

Yes his review is very detailed. He knows it's a about the variation oh low and high. His graphs show it quite good.

He didn't test the unreleased sense, obviously....

I would be surprised if they changed and put a much better spO2 sensor though. 

[Marrrmaduke]

@SunsetRunner I feel confused... If I got this right: YouTuber X tested Fitbit with SpO2 sensor that shows relative values. Per my knowledge the actual % number is only available on: a) Sense & Versa 3, b) older versas with the newest firmware update and SpO2 clock face (not available in all countries). Relative values will give you only the trend. To come close to sleep apnea you need actual %#. Even if YouTuber X had Sense in their hand during the interview, they wouldn't be able to use it as the device can't be yet added to Fitbit app. Dev team hasn't enabled it yet. So... I would wait until sense comes out...

[SunsetRunner]

@Marrrmaduke  Like I said he didn't test the Sense, how could he ? It's not yet officially released, let alone being able to run tests.

He didn't spot-check the O2. He used a monitoring machine given by his doctor because of his sleep apnea. At the same time he wore the Fit Bit Versa2. Versa showed for 3 nights ( If I remember well) no signs of highs or lows, thus no indication that his had pause in his breathing, while the machine from the doctor showed several pauses, indicating apnea.

He concluded that he didn't know what to assume and he can't recommend relying on it so much, if at all. He was hoping if they company gave a better break out of the measures.

If sense is considered to solve any doubts and be accurate, it will be seen. For us with no other means of comparing it with reliable monitors given from hospitals, it's going to be difficult.

Like I said, he's not right or wrong. It was a test and he presented the results.

It would be ultra nice if Fitbit gave evidence of the functionality of their sensors. A demonstration, a survery, a study, a comparison, anything really. They put this functionality behind a subscription, don't forget that. That shows that they place value behind this. I hope they're right.

[Marrrmaduke]

@SunsetRunner I think comparing readouts of relative spo2 to exact measurements on the professional reader is like comparing apples to oranges. That's all I'm trying to point out. There is a reason why Fitbit did not obtain FDA approval for relative measurements and sleep apnea. Honestly. The new health metrics dashboard is coming that will give the user deeper analytics (some features behind premium) and we could compare these. I will take a look once I have Sense in my paws. 

ETA: You did title this thread SpO2 accuracy after all, which imho is misleading as this YouTube review has nothing to do with it. 😊 Again apples and oranges. 

[ahefner33]

Actually, with promoting spo2 measurements to make sells in a certain niche without FDA approval is liable for lawsuits. 

So if people go to the dr and spend money on sleep monitoring test because fitbit is showing concerning SpO2 %s and ends up they are fine then whats the purpose of the feature?

Its false marketing and yes you can make the claim you should always ask your Dr but they are using this feature for sells without making it available how well the accuracy is with availability test results.

Shoot with their heart rate monitoring for exercise is already concerning (compared to straps, Garmin, galaxy/active) 

[Zennybear]

Useless comment. Why did you bother?

[Rich_Laue]

@ahefner33 fitbit is not promoting the SpO2 as going exact measurements. The fact is that the user gets no measurements, only a graph of changes in level. 

Even with this, some people have noticed changes with COVID.