Seattle Forrest

https://www.garmin.com/en-US/p/716808
This isn't a release many people would have predicted, I'm curious to know more and see what's next.

Polaris OBark

They beat Apple to the punch.

Given how much many commercial wrist blood pressure monitors aren't worth their weight in sand, it will be interesting to see how it performs.

Seattle Forrest

The Garmin one looks more traditional as medical equipment:



It costs $150. It looks like a cheap but legitimate BP monitor can be had for $20. The Garmin one records into their Connect service, that doesn't seem worth $130 to me but I don't have hypertension.

Very curious about the business case and possible regulatory back story to this. It would be great for patients to be able to bring their data to clinics and avoid having tests done generally, BP is free and noninvasive though. I feel like this implies Garmin wants to dip its toe in a new market.

Polaris OBark

Yeah, sorry, I posted before I looked.

Mine goes up in a clinical setting, so I think having one that records (so they don't have to take my word for it) might be worth it.

Cheapest reliable one I found was $60, so this is about 2X more.

unterhausen

I don't take my bp that often, maybe once a week. I have a blood pressure monitor where the electronics is separate. Omron has some of that type for $50-ish that are validated, but mine was about $80. The one I got has bluetooth so I can more easily record my data somewhere I can look at it. I can see how it would be nice to have the data on connect.

It would be nice if it met the AMA criteria for validation, which it doesn't appear to do. I think they ran their own trial. https://www.validatebp.org/manufacturers/

Milton Keynes

My smart watch is a cheap ~$50 Chinese smart watch which has a blood pressure function, but I don't take it seriously at all. Most of the time it reads like 102/62 or something way low like that. I do try to keep the watch at my heart level but it doesn't seem to change much. I did get it to read 121/74 once which I think was probably closer to reality.

It also reads blood oxygen which I think seems to be fairly accurate, usually reads from 96-98%, and heart rate seems to be accurate. But if I really want to check my blood pressure I'll use a blood pressure cuff and not the watch.

79pmooney

Garmin does blood pressure now

"does" - is that raising or lowering of that blood pressure? I'll stick to staying uninformed and stress-free. BITD I had a real cuff and took my BP in the morning to check my recovery. (My racing days.) If I could get it, I knew I wasn't fully recovered. If all was well, it was so low I couldn't find my pulse. Never did learn my waking BP or pulse when rested. Bicycled to an AM blood donation in those days and "flunked" both stolic and diastolic. (98/48. 100/50 was lowest the Red Cross would take. Nurse was disgusted but she wrote the approved minimum and drew my blood. They knew me well as their fittest donor.)

honcho

This is just a wifi connected BP monitor with Garmin Connect. Not the holy grail of no inflating cuff (and non-invasive) blood pressure measurement. If you're already using Garmin Connect then this is a reasonable addition but an Omron or other quality BP monitor is less expensive and just as useful.

When Garmin or another company succeeds with a wearable, reasonably accurate BP and blood sugar monitoring that doesn't require expensive consumables, they will have a winner or their hands.

fooferdoggie 

I have their scale and you have to open the app after ti is done to get it to sync. its not automatic. 150.00 is a lot for a arm mounted one. I bought one of the best rated ones for 80.00 but you would want a app just for BP to keep track and tel you know what's going on

fooferdoggie 

yep I agree I have the omron and it works well. the app could be better but other then that.

IcySwan1 

The Garmin universe is expanding all the time. Garmin Connect is handy and takes data from various computers, sensors, watches, and other things. The price is a tad steep for just another data point unless you have BP issues and want your health information consolidated on Connect. Pass for now.

Mike

Chuck M 

I got mine today. Overall it is easy to use and the cost wasn't an issue because I basically got it for free as a Bravo award from my current employer. But Tuesday I had a preemployment physical and my BP scared the hell out of the nurse and gave me a bit of concern too. For that reason, I changed my choice of using my award for the BPM monitor instead of the Varia radar I wanted to use it for.

Just a few minutes ago I used it and had 128/79. But earlier today when I unboxed it I was 160/83. I'll probably be seeing my GP soon but hopefully it is going to be a temporary thing after my second COVID bout like my arrhythmia was after the first one.

Iride01 

Personally I think in a clinical setting they are incorrectly wrapping the cuff around the arm. Most I've read the instructions for say to leave it loose enough for two fingers to be inserted under it which is quite loose. But they don't, they think that if they put two fingers under the cuff when they wrap it and then can manage to pull them out that they are good. However these automatic cuffs can squeeze the dickens out of ones arm and are painful. That'll raise anyone's BP. And on my wife these cuffs leave blood blisters where they've squeezed too hard in clinical settings.

I actually had several BP checks lately in the clinic, and the persons used the old style BP cuffs where they had to use a stethoscope and a bulb to blow up the cuff.

datlas 

Apple (and I am sure others) are doing research to use OPTICAL Doppler flow measurements to measure BP without a squeeze.

I expect a reasonable product in the next year or two. Could be a game changer if it’s accurate.

NoWhammies

I've been using my Garmin BPM for months now without issue. Yes it might be more expensive than other BPM on the market, but all of my other health data is in Garmin Connect. So might as well have my BP in there too. Overall I am quite happy with it. Even if the big X is still coming up at the end of my reading. Looking at the Garmin forums I see that I am not the only one experiencing this issue either.

blacknbluebikes 

For future readers of this thread with intent to pursue health data collection, here's another perspective. I use an Omron Evolv, which find really useful and durable. While it definitely costs quite a bit more, I think it's worth it for the iPhone integration and the excellent logging capabilities. If the intent is a legitimate health analysis, I can't imagine why anyone would want a low-priced solution. Now, I'm not typical. I have really crazy BP. Really crazy. Technically called "highly labile BP," it goes to extremes and tends to stay there, hard to trigger a reversal once it goes. Baroreceptor damage in the carotid artery from radiation therapy to the neck 15 years ago. I can pull 170/140 in front of someone wearing a white coat; I can print 80/40 after eating, drinking, exercising or 30 minutes settling in front of the TV. I can stand up on the train ride home and suddenly feel stoned beyond belief. A call to the CEO's office and I feel the pressure in my cheekbones. At least once a week, I fake that I'm tying my shoes just to get the blood back to my head. I see a good cardiologist every six months and I always scare the nurse out of her wits. The doc knows my story well, is quite a runner himself, and always likes to see a log of the week before our visit. "Keep up the riding," he says. Recommendations: log a lot of readings in lots of situations, for with everyone there's always variance (not like mine) and your doc will appreciate the broader dataset. Bring your device to a checkup appointment and see that it's fairly "close to calibrated" by letting the pro do one arm while the device does the other - match should be "close enough." And remember, especially around here, that Dr. Internet is not your friend. Find the right doctor for you.