Abnormal heart rate detection through real-time heart monitoring application

Abstract

Health monitoring that requires doctors and patients at the healthcare center may not be practical during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Alternatively, mobile health (mHealth) should be embraced to minimize contact between patients and healthcare personnel. This research aims to enhance the detection of abnormal heart rate (HR) detection by developing a real-time heart rate monitoring (RTHM) application. Sixteen healthy adults participated in a physical real-time HR monitoring testbed. Participants HR was measured for three minutes resting and three minutes performing moderate-intensity physical activity. The results were compared with the polar beat app. Additionally, the energy consumption, the time taken to receive an alarm message, and an acceptance test were analyzed. The app is acceptably accurate, the mean absolute percentage error less than 2%. The response time to receive the alarm message is 30 seconds on average, which is under an acceptable range of medical standards. Moreover, the app is power efficient, 477 mW on average. Participants show a positive attitude towards using RTHM. RTHM is expected to provide a more plausible tool for monitoring the heart towards enhancing abnormal HR detection by promoting patient-oriented healthcare and minimizing sudden deaths due to heart failure.