Smartwatches could help detect early signs of PTSD

By Stephen Beech

Smartwatches could help detect early signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, suggests new research.

A three-year study involving more than 5,000 residents of Israel before and after the Hamas-led terror attacks on their country on October 7, 2023, found that those who watched extensive media coverage of the atrocities were more likely to develop PTSD.

Previous research has shown that people who are directly exposed to traumatic events can develop acute stress disorder, which may progress to PTSD.

However, less was known about PTSD among people indirectly exposed to traumatic events through media coverage.

To address that gap, researchers from Tel Aviv University in Israel and Stanford University in the United States studied the aftermath of the October 7 attacks.

The team analyzed data from two groups of Israeli residents who were not attacked, nor were their immediate family members.

The first group included 4,806 participants in a study that was ongoing at the time, enabling a "before and after" comparison.

The participants completed a daily questionnaire assessing their stress levels, and they wore a smartwatch to track various measures of well-being, such as daily heart rate and sleep quality.

The second group included 2,536 people who completed questionnaires assessing PTSD symptoms and anxiety around two months after the October 7 attacks, and again five months later.

The analysis, published in the journal PLOS Mental Health showed that, about two months after October 7, PTSD rates reached 22.9% to 36% among participants, remaining at 15.9% to 24.7% after seven months.

But participants who watched "extensive" amounts of news coverage or graphic videos of the attacks on platforms such as Telegram and TikTok had a higher risk of developing PTSD.

Study co-author Prof. Erez Shmueli, of Tel Aviv University, said: "The smartwatch data also revealed that participants who developed PTSD had sharper increases in stress levels and sharper declines in mood, physical activity, and sleep quality during the first week after October 7.

"These findings highlight the impact of media exposure on PTSD and suggest that smartwatches could aid early detection."

The researchers say that smartwatches could not only catch early signs of PTSD, they may also enable earlier treatment

Prof. Shmueli added: "Future research could address some of this study’s limitations, such as including longer follow-up periods and formal PTSD screening by healthcare professionals."