The Omron HeartGuide (OHG) is a digital wristwatch that takes oscillometric measurements of blood pressure. Named to TIME Magazine’s Best Inventions of 2019 list, the promise of this device was succinctly summarized by an Omron executive: “Integrating a blood-pressure monitor into a sleek watch that also measures sleep and activity makes staying on top of cardiovascular health easy and provides a fuller picture of overall wellness.”
Previously on the skeptical cardiologist, I described my excitement at the HeartGuide’s ability to “serve as an accurate and unobtrusive daytime ambulatory blood pressure monitor.” After wearing the HeartGuide for a week and using it in a variety of situations to measure my blood pressure I had begun rethinking my usual recommendation against wrist blood pressure cuffs.
For me, the great attraction of the OHG was and still is the ability to measure your BP “anytime, anywhere.”
Despite my unabashed enthusiasm for the Heart Guide’s ability to provide facile daytime BP monitoring, certain limitations need to be recognized.
Herein is my more detailed, objective and pragmatic review of the device.
What Is In The Cube?
The OHG is available on the Omron website for $499 but upon checkout currently, Omron is providing a 10% discount along with free economy shipping.
The device is available in medium and large wrist sizes. I sized my wrist as a medium using the measuring tool on their website.
Proper wrist sizing is crucial for accurate BP measurement.
The OHG ships in a black cube.
Inside the cube you will discover:
- 1 Monitor
- 1 Paper Sizing Guide
- 1 Instruction Manual
- 1 Quick Start Guide
- 1 Charging Clip
- 1 AC Adapter
- 1 Charging Cable
- 2 Replacement Cuff Sleeves
The OHG is large but stylish in appearance. It weighs 115 grams and the watch dial has a diameter of 1.9 inches.
I found it took about 2 hours to fully charge the battery and that the device remained charged for about 48 hours.
Preparing For Blood Pressure Measurement
Your monitor has a built-in heart zone indicator that is used as an aid in determining if your monitor is at the correct height and position. It has been designed to work with most people so that when your wrist is at the correct position relative to your heart, your monitor will vibrate once. If it does not vibrate, your monitor may not be at the correct height and position relative to your heart.
Due to differences in individual size and physique, this feature may not be helpful in all cases and you may wish to turn off this feature. If you feel the position of the wrist, according to the heart zone indicator’s guidance, does NOT match your heart level, please turn off this feature and follow your judgment.
It’s not clear to me how the OHG knows that it is at heart level. I experimented with various positions including lying on my back and standing with my wrist definitely at heart level. Sometimes the OHG agreed, others not.
Measuring A Blood Pressure
Once positioned properly simply push the top button on the watch and put your wrist in the appropriate position. You will notice a vibration followed by an initial mild inflation of the cuff that lasts about 15 seconds followed by a pause of a few seconds then a full , tight inflation of the cuff.
The entire process takes over a minute and is significantly slower than the upper arm BP cuffs I have been using.
When completed, the cuff deflates and the systolic and diastolic blood pressure along with pulse rate are displayed.
Accuracy
Before I could recommend the OHG in particular or wrist BP cuff devices, in general, I needed to know how they compared to the gold standard brachial artery, upper arm BP cuff.
I asked Omron for data supporting the accuracy of the OHG and they provided me with a copy of a 2019 paper entitled “Validation of two watch‐type wearable blood pressure monitors according to the ANSI/AAMI/ISO81060‐2:2013 guidelines: Omron HEM‐6410T‐ZM and HEM‐6410T‐ZL”
The lead author of this study is an MD, PhD working at the Jichi School of Medicine in Japan and his 3 co-authors all work for Omron Healthcare, Kyoto, Japan, which provided funding for the research so this skeptical cardiologist takes this information with a grain of salt.
The introduction to this paper points out that ambulatory blood pressure monitoring is important to help identify individuals who have higher blood pressure outside the clinic. Such individuals have masked hypertension, the opposite of white-coat hypertension.
The researchers concluded that both the large and medium wrist HeartGuide devices were accurate and fulfilled criteria set by the American National Standards Institute, Inc/Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation/International Organization for Standardization.
Here are the Bland-Altman plots from that study
Note that although the average difference between the reference BP and the HeartGuide systolic BP is close to zero there is a significant variation from zero for individual measurements with some 20 mm Hg higher and some 20 mm Hg lower.
My experience confirms this significant individual variation. I took a number of simultaneous measurements using the HeartGuide on one wrist and a brachial BP cuff on the contralateral arm. I did this over multiple days under differing circumstances and with the devices on different arms.
I found that the HeartGuide systolic blood pressure was on average 10 mm Hg lower than the brachial BP when my blood pressure was high (>140 mm Hg). When my systolic BP was between 120 and 130 mm Hg the HeartGuide was 5 mm Hg lower than the brachial and when my blood pressure was less than 120 mm Hg the Heart Guide and brachial BPs were identical.
I made similar measurements on other volunteers and found some had consistently identical wrist and brachial SBP whereas others had consistently higher blood pressures by wrist compared to brachial techniques.
Because of this individual variation I highly recommend users calibrate the OHG (or any wrist-based BP cuff) versus a standard BP cuff over a series of days with multiple measurements to see how the two measurements compare. If you find a consistent over or underestimate then the device can be used with this known adjustment.
Comfort, Form, Fit
The OHG is big. and it is bulky. The fastening strap is made of thick rubber and underneath that is the inflatable microcuff which works like the larger cuffs designed for brachial/upper arm measurement.
I was always aware of something on my wrist when I was wearing it. The OHG cannot be accessed if you are wearing a coat or any garment with thickish sleeves. Getting most upper garments on and off while wearing the OHG is a chore.
In the picture below you get a feel for how the OHG interacts with long sleeve garments. My shirt sleeve would not slip over it. When I was wearing a coat or sweatshirt I could not access or view the OHG as its large size prevented pulling back the sleeve.
Some Other Things the OHG Does
The OHG measures steps and it tells time. Omron also indicates it can be used to measure sleep quality. Frankly, I did not test this feature because I felt I would not be able to sleep comfortably with the device on my wrist.
The OHG pairs via Bluetooth with the Omron smartphone app “Heart Advisor.” The app displays imported BP, pulse, activity and sleep data in various graphic formats.
Data can be exported from the Heart Advisor app by email in either an Excel or PDF file. This feature would allow the user to conveniently send recorded BPs to their physician.
The OHG sends an alert when you receive a text message or phone call but you can’t see the text message or answer the call.
Overall Pros and Cons
I am still a fan of the OHG despite the limitations I have indicated above.
I don’t see most people using the OHG as their everyday smartwatch The inconvenience and discomfort factors for most will outweigh the benefits.
However, I do see a very beneficial role in wearing the OHG periodically for targeted purposes. For example, it could be worn to work once per week to determine how one’s blood pressure is reacting to stressful situations or to the gym to assess one’s blood pressure before and after a workout. At least one study suggests that BP obtained at work is superior to 24 hour or sleep BP in predicting end-organ damage (manifested by echocardiographic left ventricular hypertrophy) from hypertension
If Omron can develop a method for the device to automatically trigger during sleep and provide accurate nocturnal BP measurements this would be a huge advance in the management of hypertension.
Skeptically Yours,
-ACP
N.B.Technical Specifications for the OHG
Model: BP8000-M
Display: Transflective memory-in-pixel LCD
Memory: Blood pressure measurement up to 100 times, Activity measurement up to 7 days, Sleep measurement up to 7 times, Event up to 100 items
Transmission method: Bluetooth® low energy technology
Power source: 1 Lithium ion polymer rechargeable battery, AC adapter
Battery lifespan: Will last for approximately 500 cycles, 8 times/day measurements in normal temperatures of 77 °F (25 °C) when new battery fully charged
Battery life: A typical user can expect to charge HeartGuide approximately 2-3 times per week, depending upon the frequency of use of HeartGuide’s features
Weight: Approximately 4.1 oz (115 g)
Dimensions: Diameter approximately 1.89” (48 mm), Case thickness approximately 0.55” (14 mm), Band width approximately 1.18” (30 mm)
Measurable wrist circumference: Medium – 6.3” to 7.5” (160 to 190 mm), Large – 7.1” to 8.5” (180 to 215 mm)
This post was updated 2/15/2023
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13 thoughts on “The Full Omron HeartGuide Review: Is This Wearable Wristwatch Blood Pressure Monitor Right For You?”
I purchased this watch last December at the request of my DR. because I am having BP problems going from 100 to 200 plus in a day. This watch is not accurate some ten points lower on both high and low readings against an Omron cuff machine and once my BP is above 190 it is some 20 plus points lower than my cuff machine. For $500.00 Omron could do better or take this item off the market.
I would really like to be able to check my blood pressure overnight. My doctor has tried me several times with a 24-hour ambulatory monitor, but I found it so uncomfortable to wear at night that I barely slept. I wondered if this device did overnight readings.
Omron has hinted at that capability
How do i turn the watch off to save batteries. My battery seems to last a very short time. What am i doing wrong? thank u!
I purchased the Heart Guide with the foolish optimism that it would “do as it says on the tin”. However being in the consumer product business for more than 30 years I am always disappointed to see a company the size of Omron launch an expensive product like this – knowing that it probably will not work for everyone! I have tested the product numerous times against a proper BP monitor and the results vary widely. God help anyone who depends on this product for genuine health reasons.
Very Interesting review of this monitor. I would like to see an objective review of the new BioBeat BB613 wrist monitor (watch) which monitors both BP and SpO2 levels.
I have requested a demo model from Biobeat
I’m hoping as a cardio, you’ll more influence on the manufacturer than i, they layman, would have.
My wife is a Parkinsonism patient (LBD) exhibiting wide swings in BP depending on positions (ly/sit/stand).
It would be of particular value to annotate the BP reading with these positions.
This will allow for more accurate dosing of BP assist medications such as Midodrine.
IDEALLY it would be great to annotate this at the watch level rather than the app level.
Another really good feature would be the ability for the caregiver to induce the watch reading from the app.
Caregivers often already have their hands full with safe escorting and don’t have the ability to distrupt the patient.
Hello, Great review of the Heart Guide. I had a chance to download the manual. Please be aware that according to the specifications section of the manual the cuff needs replacement every 0.5 years. So this means that every 6 months the cuff needs replacement. Im waiting on Omron to clarify this. Also the manual indicates that the monitors life is 2 years. Not sure what this means. Does this mean the battery needs to be replaced after 2 years. Also waiting on Omron to clarify this question. Overall I am impressed with the features but it does seem like it will require replacement cuffs and batteries as time goes by. Not sure how much the cost will be but its something to consider. I still havent decided whether to pull the $500 trigger on the Heartguide.
I bought through my Son the HeartGuide online the software didn’t work with my Samsung I purchased one year . Charging the unit is difficult and last 2-3:hours only . I am very much disappointed requesting a compatability software from Omron but no reply and asking to return it again no reply
Shocked I am. I looked up the author of the validation study cited by TSC and found him to be the same as the professor who wrote a paper validating the BPro! https://www.medtach.com/uploads/1/9/7/9/19798371/bpro_-_comparison_of_wrist-type_and_arm-type_24-h_blood_pressure_monitoring_devices_for_ambulatory_use.pdf
As always, I appreciate the lengths TSC goes to bring curated, validated information to his hungry audience of fellow skeptics. I, like Dr. Wilson , frequently monitor my BP with a(n oscillometric) arm BP cuff EXCEPT when I want a 24 hour long q15min assessment using a cuffless technology that also measures my central aortic systolic pressure. For that I use a BPro (https://www.medtach.com/bpro.html).
I am a bit old fashioned. I measure my blood pressure 3-4 times every day using a standard BP cuff. I have no interest in wearing a bulky watch that monitors my every move. I purchased an Apple watch and I have yet to get around wearing it on a regular basis. I prefer skinny Skagen watches. And I definitely do not need a watch to tell me how well I slept!