Wrist-worn device may detect cardiac arrest

A watch-sized device worn on the wrist successfully detected loss of pulse in an early-stage trial, a key step in developing a practical, noninvasive way to monitor patients at risk for sudden cardiac death, researchers said. In most patients participating in the phase I trial, the investigational device correctly signaled artificially induced pulselessness, though it had a false-positive rate of about 10%, according to John Rickard, MD, of the Cleveland Clinic, and colleagues online in Heart Rhythm. Called the Wriskwatch, the device incorporates a piezoelectric disk strapped snugly against the wrist, such that it detects the arterial swelling at the radial pulse point. It can therefore identify episodes of pulselessness or ventricular fibrillation - MedPage Today