Wearable devices may help detect early pregnancy changes, researchers say

Your smartwatch or Oura Ring may be able to do more than count steps or monitor your sleep. 

Research suggests that wearable devices could detect early changes linked to pregnancy, sometimes before someone takes a pregnancy test.

Cardiologists say pregnancy causes major changes throughout the cardiovascular system, including an increase in resting heart rate that wearable devices can detect. 

A study published through the National Library of Medicine also found a nightly peak in respiratory rate during pregnancy consistent with wearable device tracking.

Dr. Minhal Makshood, a cardiologist with MedStar Health, said those changes can appear surprisingly early.

"As early as five to six weeks, or even sometimes before that because of all the hormonal changes, pregnancy in and of itself is, you know, a stress test," Makshood said. "Because of the hemodynamic changes, we start noticing differences in the tracking devices."

Doctors stress that wearable devices cannot diagnose pregnancy. Instead, they can serve as another tool for people who routinely monitor their health and notice changes in their personal data.

"If you are a person who's in tune with your body, you're constantly tracking all these changes you're going to notice changes because pregnancy is a tremendous cardiovascular change and shift," Makshood said.

Researchers say the same technology could one day help doctors identify pregnancy complications even earlier, giving patients and providers more time to monitor and manage potential health concerns.