Tim Hardwick of MacRumors reports on the results of a recent ResearchKit-powered study:

The 10-month study involved 598 people who tracked their seizures with an iPhone app called EpiWatch, which was built by Johns Hopkins using Apple’s ResearchKit software framework. The app features a custom Apple Watch complication that provides patients with one-touch access to record accelerometer and heart rate sensor data. When participants felt a seizure aura coming on, they were asked to launch the app to let it record their heart rate and movements for 10 minutes.

Apple reported on the launch of this study back in October 2015, so it’s exciting to have some of the data from the study brought to light. Triggers for seizures was a major data point gleaned from those participating in the study.

Stress was revealed to be the most common trigger, and was linked to 37 percent of the seizures, while 18 percent of sufferers identified lack of sleep as another contributing factor. Meanwhile, menstruation was found to be a cause in 12 percent of recorded seizures, and overexertion accounted for 11 percent.

In the full press release on the study’s results, study author Gregory Krauss, MD, notes:

“Seizures are very unpredictable,” said Krauss. “Our eventual goal is to be able to use wearable technology to predict an oncoming seizure. This could potentially save lives as well as give people with epilepsy more freedom. The data collected in this study helps us take a step in that direction.”

ResearchKit was first announced by Apple in March 2015 at its spring event. At March 2016’s event, we received an update on the health initiative. If recent tradition holds true, we may receive another update from Apple soon.

Pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline announced a rheumatoid arthritis study today that takes advantage of Apple’s ResearchKit frameworks. According to Glaxo’s press release:

We are the first in our industry to use Apple’s ResearchKit as part of our research, this time looking at the impact a patient’s disease has on their day-to-day life.

Glaxo will use the app,

to conduct surveys and use iPhone sensors to collect and track common symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis: joint pain, fatigue, and mood. It will also track activity and quality of life measures for 300 patients over a three-month period. 

The app, called GSK PARADE, is available now on the App Store as a free download. Rheumatoid arthritis patients who live in the US and are 21 or older can apply to participate in the study using the app.

Since its introduction last year, ResearchKit has been used to study diabetes, asthma, and a number of other conditions. Last Fall, Apple announced that more than 50 researchers had contributed active tasks in 6 months and more than 100,000 participants had contributed data to ResearchKit. It’s good to see ResearchKit’s use continue to expand in the health care and pharmaceuticals industries.