How effective are cuffless devices for measuring blood pressure? All you need to know

Cuffless devices, like smartwatches, rings and fingertip monitors, have been on the rise when it comes to evaluating blood pressure. Without any need for a traditional cuff, these devices use technologies to measure blood pressure. Despite all these advancements, doubts still loom large over the meticulousness of such devices. A latest scientific statement published in the American Heart Association’s journal Hypertension has provided some significant insights into the effectiveness of the cuffless devices.

Limitations

As per the statement, cuffless BP devices, “which are increasingly available for purchase on the international market, have the potential to remove barriers to BP measurement in both research and clinical care. However, there are unanswered questions on whether, how, and in what settings these devices may be appropriate for use.”

It further stated that the gaps include the importance to recognise whether the somewhat distinctive and often enormous volume of readings acquired by these devices have significant relationships with clinical outcomes and are appropriate for deciding applicable interventions.

In the segment titled, “Conclusion and future directions,” the statement mentioned that major limitations have to be addressed before people can totally secure advantages from these new technologies.

“Cuffless blood pressure devices are easy to use, convenient and capable of frequent or continuous monitoring, potentially providing insights into blood pressure changes during daily life and sleep. However, the speed of commercialization has outpaced the science,” said Chair of the scientific statement writing group Jordana Cohen, an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania.

Recommendations

Earlier this year, the 2025 AHA/ACC High Blood Pressure Guideline had shared some recommendations on this matter. “Reliance on cuffless devices, including smartwatches, for accurate blood pressure measurements should be avoided until these devices demonstrate greater precision and reliability,” it stated.

According to the American Heart Association, cuffless devices often provide a high volume of readings, many picked up in settings where blood pressure measurements were not performed earlier, such as during sleep and physical activity.

The clinical relevance of this data remains uncertain, it added.

FAQs

How many people in the US have high blood pressure?

Latest data from the American Heart Association suggests that nearly half of US adults (roughly 122 million) have high blood pressure.

Is high blood pressure a leading cause of death globally?

Yes. Around the world, it affects an estimated 1.4 billion adults.

What are cuffless devices?

These are wearable gadgets that are used to measure blood pressure.