In a one-of-a-kind study, physiological knowledge recorded through smartwatches was used to read about the protection of Covid-19 booster vaccines.
Led by PhD student Matan Yechezkel, researchers at Tel Aviv University provided smartwatches to 4,698 Israelis to monitor physiological parameters, such as central frequency, variation in core activity, sleep quality and number of steps taken, for two years.
All participants examined were asked to answer comprehensive fitness questionnaires through a specially developed app.
More than 2000 of the participants received the booster dose of the Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine during the trial period, allowing researchers to objectively compare measurements before and after that dose.
In addition, the researchers analyzed the medical records of 250,000 randomly selected Maccabi Health Services HMO members, anonymously, in collaboration with KSM Research.
The researchers had to evaluate the protection of the vaccines from 3 perspectives: subjective (what the player reports), objective (what the screen detects) and clinical (what the doctor diagnoses).
“We discovered clear and significant changes after vaccine control, such as an accumulation in the central pulse rate measured before vaccination,” said study leader Professor Dan Yamin, head of the TAU Epidemic Research Laboratory.
“And then we saw a return to the participant’s baseline, which is that pulse grades after vaccination return to their previous levels after six days,” Yamin said.
“Therefore, our confirmation of the protection of the vaccine. The studies also allowed us to compare the subjective and objective signs and medical diagnosis of the same player who won the first retirement and a few months later the time of retirement. “
“We found that it was not in the physiological reaction recorded through the smartwatches or that was reported through the player in the app. “
According to the medical literature reporting 25 side effects attributed to the Covid mRNA vaccine, researchers were on the lookout for rare cases of central muscle inflammation (myocarditis) and pericarditis.
They report that they have noticed accumulation of serious incidents of any kind related to vaccination.
“If the watch reports minor muscle changes and the player reports only significant changes that he is experiencing, the medical history informs us about cases diagnosed by physicians, as well as hospitalizations that could be similar to vaccines, with a focus on central disease. Sometimes, Yamin explained.
“We did a thorough investigation of those 25 rare side effects, and we didn’t see an accumulation in their occurrence in other people who received the booster. We found the vaccine to be helpful.
Yamin added: “The smartwatch’s sensors ‘felt’ that the vaccine was safe, the vaccinated himself reported that the vaccine was safe, and eventually the doctors decided the vaccine was safe. The effects of the examination have far-reaching. implications for objective vaccine protection tests in the future.
The researchers said their most unexpected location was that the watches were more sensitive than the other people they monitored.
For example, many participants reported symptoms such as fatigue and headaches for two to three days after receiving the vaccine. However, the watches still detected different adjustments in the center frequency for several days after the user reported that it had returned to normal.
“There were also vaccinated participants who reported no side effects and yet experienced physiological changes, based on knowledge of their smartwatches,” Yamin said.
Published in Lancet Respiratory Medicine, the studies examine conducted in collaboration with Professor Erez Shmueli, head of TAU’s Big Data Lab, and with Tal Patalon and Sivan Gazit of KSM Research.