Health Canada Approves Aktiia Bracelet: First Consumer Blood Pressure Wearable for Canadians To Take Accurate, Automated Readings Up To 50 Times A Day
- Choosing Canada as its first market outside of Europe, Aktiia’s clinically validated ‘cuffless’ blood monitoring bracelet is now available as the first consumer blood pressure monitor to automatically provide up to 800 readings per month, day and night
- Following a Conformité Européenne (CE) mark in Europe to meet EU safety, health, and environmental protection requirements, Aktiia has now received Health Canada approval for the device
- Aktiia’s wearable technology has been validated through over 11 billion physiological data points
- The wearable has already helped nearly 100,000 hypertension sufferers across Europe to monitor their condition continuously to improve health outcomes
NEUCHÂTEL, Switzerland, Nov. 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Aktiia, the Swiss HealthTech specializing in cuffless blood pressure monitoring technology, today announced the launch of its continuous blood pressure monitoring bracelet in Canada, marking Canada as its first market expansion outside of Europe.
The Health Canada-approved medical device represents a significant advancement in the measurement of blood pressure to aid in managing hypertension, a condition affecting more than 7.5 million Canadians, or one in four adults.
How Does Aktiia’s Bracelet Work?
The precision monitoring device can take readings automatically whether users are awake or asleep, providing up to 800 measurements a month to understand what impacts blood pressure.
These insights help users understand what impacts blood pressure and can be shared through the app with doctors to help give a deeper understanding of the impact of medication or lifestyle changes on users’ health.
The technology uses advanced optical sensors and proprietary algorithms to measure blood pressure through Optical Blood Pressure Monitoring (OBPM), analyzing subtle changes in the diameter of arteries with each heartbeat.
Aktiia’s bracelet is worn day and night to provide users with around-the-clock blood pressure monitoring. The comfortable wearable bracelet device connects to a smartphone app, where insights can easily be shared with physicians. Unlike traditional cuff-based monitors, Aktiia’s bracelet offers continuous measurements without interrupting daily activities.
Key features of the Aktiia bracelet include:
– Clinically validated accuracy with CE mark certification and Health Canada approval
– Seamless smartphone app integration, detailed tracking and analysis, and real-time data sharing capabilities with healthcare providers
– A sleek, comfortable, cuffless design with a battery life of up to 9 days
– Comprehensive monthly reports and personalized insights
Hypertension Costs the Canadian Healthcare System over $13.9 Billion Annually
The launch comes at a critical time, as hypertension remains the leading cause of preventable death globally., affects 1.3 billion people worldwide. In Canada alone, hypertension costs the Canadian healthcare system over $13.9 billion annually. Recent research from John Hopkins Medicine has also found that many commonly used arm positions with cuff monitors can substantially overestimate blood pressure readings.
“Traditional blood pressure cuff monitoring can be intrusive and often lead to incomplete or inaccurate readings due to factors like white coat syndrome, which affects up to 30% of patients,” said Dr. Jay Shah, Chief Medical Officer at Aktiia. “Aktiia’s bracelet provides a much more complete picture of a user’s blood pressure patterns, enabling better-informed healthcare decisions and improved outcomes.”
According to Aktiia CEO Raghav Gupta, Canada’s collaborative healthcare environment is ideally positioned to integrate innovative products into the healthcare ecosystem:
“By bringing our technology to Canada, we’re making it easier for millions of people to take control of their cardiovascular health through continuous, hassle-free monitoring. Canada has offered Aktiia smooth pathways for product adoption, clinical trials, and partnerships with healthcare providers across the country.”
Aktiia’s presence in Canada began in 2023, marked by the beginning of its collaboration with (GAPP) study investigators Professors David Conen MD MPH at McMaster University and Lorenz Risch MD MPH at the Private University of Liechtenstein and the Dr. Risch Laboratory.
The GAPP study, a large prospective cohort study in the Principality of Liechtenstein involving over 2,000 participants monitored for more than a decade, aims to identify genetic and phenotypic factors influencing blood pressure and cardiovascular disease. As part of its ongoing research, the study uses Aktiia’s innovative 24/7 blood pressure monitoring. The collaboration is set to uncover connections between long-term blood pressure patterns and genetic, biomarker, imaging, and healthcare data, potentially leading to groundbreaking discoveries in the field.
The Aktiia bracelet is available now through https://aktiia.com/ca/. The device retails at $335.00, but it will sell at a promotional price of $301.50 for the next two weeks.
About Aktiia
Founded in Switzerland in May 2018, Aktiia was created to transform how blood pressure is measured and thus managed. Aktiia’s groundbreaking cuffless, optical blood pressure sensing technology enables frequent, accurate, and convenient blood pressure monitoring. Founders Drs. Mattia Bertschi and Josep Solà spent 15 years at the prestigious Swiss research institute CSEM, deciphering the language of the heart to deepen our understanding of blood pressure.
Today, under the leadership of CEO Rags Gupta and co-founders Dr. Josep Solà (CTO) and Dr. Mattia Bertschi (COO), Aktiia’s team is transforming years of innovative research into a global healthcare solution and is backed by Khosla Ventures, redalpine and Molten Ventures – amongst others.
For more information, please visit Aktiia.ca.
Media contact:
Jake Mellett
Email: press@aktiia.com
Disclaimer: Aktiia’s products are not intended for diagnosis and modification of treatment. Users of Aktiia’s products should always consult their physician for diagnosis and treatment decisions.
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