Evaluation of Huawei Smart Wearables for Detection of Atrial Fibrillation in Patients Following Ischaemic Stroke: The Liverpool-Huawei Stroke Study.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) often remains undetected following stroke. Documenting AF is critical to initiate oral anticoagulation, which has proven benefit in reducing recurrent stroke and mortality in patients with AF. The accuracy and acceptability of using smart wearables technology to detect AF in patients following stroke is unknown. The aims of the Liverpool-Huawei Stroke Study are to determine the effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and patient and staff acceptability of using Huawei smart wearables to detect AF following ischaemic stroke. The study plans to recruit 1000 adults aged ≥18 years following ischaemic stroke from participating hospitals over 12 months. All participants will be asked to wear a Huawei smart band for four weeks post-discharge. If participants do not have access to a compatible smartphone required for the study, they will be provided with a smartphone for the four-week AF monitoring period. Participants with suspected AF detected by the smart wearables, without previous known AF, will be referred for further evaluation. To determine the effectiveness of the Huawei smart wearables to detect AF, the positive predictive value will be determined. Patient acceptability of using this technology will also be examined. Additional follow-up assessments will be conducted at six and 12 months, and clinical outcomes recorded in relation to prevalent and incident AF post-stroke. The study opened for recruitment on 30/05/2022, and is currently open at four participating hospitals; the first 106 participants have been recruited. One further hospital is preparing to open for recruitment. This prospective study will examine the effectiveness and acceptability of the use of smart wearables in patients following ischaemic stroke. This could have important implications for detection of AF and therefore, earlier prophylaxis for recurrent stroke. The study is registered on https://www.isrctn.com/ (Identifier ISRCTN30693819)