Archive · 11 Dec 2025
Cuffless Devices for Blood Pressure: Effectiveness and Concerns
Cuffless devices like smartwatches and rings are becoming popular for measuring blood pressure without using a traditional cuff.
However, experts are still unsure about how accurate these devices are.
A recent report by the American Heart Association says that while these devices are convenient and can take many readings, we don't yet know if these readings are useful for making medical decisions.
The report also says that these devices are being sold to the public faster than scientists can study them.
The AHA recommends not relying on these devices for accurate blood pressure measurements until they are proven to be more precise.
High blood pressure is a big problem, affecting nearly half of adults in the US and 1.4 billion people worldwide.
Cuffless devices like smartwatches and rings are convenient but their accuracy is still uncertain.
The American Heart Association (AHA) highlights the lack of clinical outcome data for these devices.
The AHA recommends avoiding reliance on cuffless devices until they demonstrate greater precision.
High blood pressure affects nearly half of US adults (122 million) and 1.4 billion adults globally.
The speed of commercialization of these devices has outpaced scientific validation.
- Who
- American Heart Association (AHA) and experts in the field
- What
- Effectiveness and limitations of cuffless blood pressure devices
- When
- Latest insights from a recent scientific statement
- Where
- Published in the AHA's journal Hypertension
- Why
- To evaluate the accuracy and clinical relevance of cuffless devices
- Device Types
- Smartwatches, rings, fingertip monitors
- Measurement Method
- Cuffless technology
- Key Limitation
- Lack of clinical outcome data
- AHA/ACC Recommendation
- Avoid reliance until precision improves
- US High Blood Pressure Prevalence
- Nearly half of US adults (122 million)
- Global High Blood Pressure Prevalence
- 1.4 billion adults