Apple’s latest health-tracking feature has been cleared by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in the US. The Cupertino giant estimates that it is capable of helping detect up to 1 million cases of undiagnosed hypertension within a year. Its Notifications have been unveiled on the new Watch Series 11 and Ultra 3.
Elevated blood pressure or hypertension is now estimated to affect nearly half of all US residents, and the latest research suggests that a timely diagnosis is significantly associated with the reduced risk of a cardiovascular event such as a stroke or a myocardial infarction.
Apple has introduced the ability to detect signs of the condition with its latest flagship Watches, although it did so in the absence of regulatory approval.
Now, however, the wearables’ Hypertension Notifications will be officially FDA-cleared on their roll-out from next week (starting September 15, 2025).
The Notifications are intended to be made available in ~150 countries worldwide over time. They have debuted in the new Watch Ultra 3 and Series 11 (now starting at $399 on Amazon), although Apple has announced that they will also become active on the Series 9 and 10, as well as the Ultra 2, when they upgrade to watchOS 26.
Apple asserts that the Notifications have been developed with the help of advanced machine learning trained on data extracted from “over 100,000 participants” over multiple studies, then tested in a ~2,000-participant clinical trial.
All the same, the company recommends that their appearance should be backed up by the results of a 7-day blood pressure evaluation using dedicated medical equipment assessed by a medical practitioner in order to constitute a diagnosis of hypertension.
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Deirdre O Donnell – Senior Tech Writer – 8668 articles published on Notebookcheck since 2018
I became a professional writer and editor shortly after graduation. My degrees are in biomedical sciences; however, they led to some experience in the biotech area, which convinced me of its potential to revolutionize our health, environment and lives in general. This developed into an all-consuming interest in more aspects of tech over time: I can never write enough on the latest electronics, gadgets and innovations. My other interests include imaging, astronomy, and streaming all the things. Oh, and coffee.
Deirdre O’Donnell, 2025-09-12 (Update: 2025-09-12)
