Stanford Researchers Launch Heart Health iPhone App

Researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine have released a free iPhone app, MyHeart Counts, which is designed to help people learn about the health of their own hearts while contributing to a study of human heart health.

People can use the MyHeart Counts app to complete tasks and respond to surveys. In return, the app will provide them with an assessment of their heart health and information about how to improve it. Researchers will collect and analyze the data about physical activity and cardiac risk factors to further the study of prevention and treatment of heart disease.

The app uses the iPhone's built-in motion sensors to track participants' physical activity during a 6-minute walk test. Participants who have a wearable activity device connected to the MyHeart Counts app can use the device to collect additional data.

"MyHeart Counts aims to be the largest study of measured physical activity and cardiovascular health to date," said Michael McConnell, professor of cardiovascular medicine at Stanford, in a prepared statement. "We want people to join in this research effort to give them personalized information about their heart health and help provide fundamental new insights into how activity helps your heart, across all ages, genders, cultures and countries."

The study is open to adults aged 18 or over. The current version of the app is available in English only to residents of the United States and requires an iPhone 5s, 6 or 6 Plus. The team behind the app plans to make it available for other mobile platforms in the future and expand the app's availability worldwide.

The app uses Apple's new ResearchKit framework, which is designed to help researchers and developers to create apps for use in medical studies. Apple plans to release the framework as open source software next month.

Further information about MyHeart Counts can be found on Stanford's site.

About the Author

Leila Meyer is a technology writer based in British Columbia. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • stylized AI code and a neural network symbol, paired with glitching code and a red warning triangle

    New Anthropic AI Models Demonstrate Coding Prowess, Behavior Risks

    Anthropic has released Claude Opus 4 and Claude Sonnet 4, its most advanced artificial intelligence models to date, boasting a significant leap in autonomous coding capabilities while simultaneously revealing troubling tendencies toward self-preservation that include attempted blackmail.

  • two large brackets facing each other with various arrows, circles, and rectangles flowing between them

    1EdTech Partners with DXtera to Support Ed Tech Interoperability

    1EdTech Consortium and DXtera Institute have announced a partnership aimed at improving access to learning data in postsecondary and higher education.

  • A Comprehensive Guide to the Best Value Evaluation Systems

    Choosing the most cost-effective evaluation system requires balancing price, usability and insight quality. In a landscape full of digital tools and data demands, it is important to prioritize platforms that deliver clear results without complicating operations.

  • college students in a classroom focus on a silver laptop, with a neural network diagram on the monitor in the background

    Report: 93% of Students Believe Gen AI Training Belongs in Degree Programs

    The vast majority of today's college students — 93% — believe generative AI training should be included in degree programs, according to a recent Coursera report. What's more, 86% of students consider gen AI the most crucial technical skill for career preparation, prioritizing it above in-demand skills such as data strategy and software development.