Daily Beast (October 21, 2022)

A new study by University of Illinois Computer Science Professor Bruce Schatz and colleagues shows that measurements taken with wrist-worn motion sensors can be used to predict one’s mortality risk up to five years later. Read a summary of the study here. The study collected longitudinal health and biometric information from over 100,000 participants. They collected information about how participants walk (acceleration and distance traveled), compared this data to benchmarks according to their age, and then predicted mortality risk. Predictions were correct 72 percent of the time after one year and 73 percent after 5 years. 

The researchers hope that one day motion detection systems in smartphones can be used to survey patient health without the need for in-person doctor visits.