AI sleep data could provide one-week early warning of flu and COVID-19
A study by the UK Health Security Agency and Sleep Cycle found that passive cough data collected via a smartphone app can predict respiratory illness outbreaks. The data often signals increases in flu and COVID-19 cases about a week before traditional surveillance systems.
Why it matters
This demonstrates the potential for passive digital health data to improve public health surveillance and provide early warning systems for pandemics.
UKHSA study finds sleep app cough data can detect respiratory illness and signal outbreaks early.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and AI sleep technology company Sleep Cycle have published the results of a research study evaluating if cough data from a sleep app could give early indications of increasing respiratory illness in England .
The study found that the passive data collected can provide a robust and regionally consistent indicator of community respiratory illness while also providing early signals for influenza and COVID-19 activity, supporting the role of digital health data in public health surveillance.
Researchers found that cough data collected through the app closely reflected levels of respiratory illness reported through NHS 111, with rises in coughing often seen around a week before increases in flu and COVID-19 cases.
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