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Your next bathroom break could come with an unexpected bonus: a check of your heart rhythm. German medical technology company Hamberger Medical has developed the HARO EKG-seat. It looks like a regular toilet seat, but built-in sensors record an electrocardiogram, also called an EKG or ECG, while you sit.
After about 30 seconds, a connected smartphone app analyzes the reading for signs of an irregular heart rhythm, including possible atrial fibrillation. AFib is the most common type of irregular heartbeat, and millions of people may have it without realizing anything feels wrong. It sounds like the kind of idea someone dreamed up during a very long bathroom break.
However, the possibility of catching a silent heart condition during something you already do every day deserves attention. Here's what the early research reveals about how well the seat works and where its limits begin.
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COULD A PAINT-ON ELECTRONIC TATTOO SPOT HEART ATTACKS?
A smart toilet seat developed in Germany could help detect irregular heart rhythms in about 30 seconds without electrodes or a wearable. (iStock)
A conventional medical EKG usually requires you to lie down while a medical professional places electrodes on your chest and other parts of your body. The HARO EKG-seat takes a different approach. Its sensors collect electrical signals from your body while you sit normally. The seat records a six-lead resting EKG and sends the information to its companion app through Bluetooth.
You do not need to attach sticky pads or remember to put on a wearable. You sit for about 30 seconds and let the seat do the work. Hamberger Medical says participants in its usability testing could operate the system without special instructions. The oldest participants in one reported study were in their 90s, according to published reports about the device. That simplicity may become one of its biggest strengths. Many health devices end up forgotten in a drawer after the novelty fades. A toilet seat is harder to forget.
The company tested the seat through what it calls the Hamberger Heart Study. Researchers compared the seat's six-lead EKG with a standard 12-lead medical EKG. Hamberger Medical reported a high level of agreement between the two systems when checking for AFib and other rhythm abnormalities.
That sounds encouraging, but there is an important limitation. The complete results have not been published in an independently peer-reviewed medical journal. Public reports also do not provide enough detail about the study's size, false alerts or performance across different groups.
Without those numbers, we cannot tell how often the seat might miss AFib or mistakenly warn someone whose heart rhythm is normal. For now, the results should be viewed as promising company-reported findings. They do not prove that the seat can replace a hospital EKG or a doctor's diagnosis.
AFib causes the heart's upper chambers to beat irregularly. Blood may then pool inside the heart, which can allow clots to form. A clot can travel to the brain and cause a stroke. The American Heart Association says AFib is linked to about five times the risk of stroke. Some people feel a racing heartbeat or fluttering in their chest. Others notice fatigue, dizziness or shortness of breath.