Peter Gamma (Physiologist & Director) Meditation Research Institute Switzerland (MRIS)

1480. The main reason of our doubts about the results of Rob ter Horst’s scientific smartwatch accuracy tests

Rob ter Horst is post-doctoral researcher from the CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna who is specialized in biological data analysis :

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-ter-horst-90756a4a?originalSubdomain=at

Giulio Superti-Furga is the Scientific Director of CeMM in Vienna where Rob ter Horst works:

Giulio Superti-Furga was a student of Charles Weissmann, who is known to a be a renowned Molecular Biologist in Switzerland:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Weissmann

Giulio Superti-Furga has published many papers, some them in Nature and Cell:

https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=de&user=dHfTgDwAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate

This let’s us conclude that the CeMM in Vienna is a research institute at the highest level. But what is not at the highest level are Rob ter Horsts Polar H10 reference chest strap and his testing protocol. You can find the discussion about this under www.petergamma.org

Rob ter Horst has published himself many papers as well:

https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=nl&user=o6avANkAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate

But which scientist at the highest level tests Apple watches against a Polar H10 chest strap? Would not testing methods at the highest level be 3 channel ECG devices combined with a treadmill protocol up to about 15 km/h? Why does a scientist at the highest level not choose this testing method?

A research institute at the highest level is also the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio:

They tested Apple watches with 3 channel ECG devices on treadmills up to about 15 km/h. Last author of these scientific papers was Milind Desai, MD, MBA:

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/staff/6670-milind-desai

with 4.9 out of 5 stars out of 246 Patient Satisfaction Ratings.

He works in the Department Cardiovascular Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic Main Campus.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org

Milind Desai has published a lot of papers as well:

https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=de&user=1GmsQ1QAAAAJ&view_op=list_works&sortby=pubdate

But in contrast to Rob ter Horst, Milind Desai’s group has chosen a testing method at the highest level with a 3 channel ECG device combined with a treadmill protocol up to about 15 km/h in this paper:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6732081

Milind Desais group tested the Apple watch I, the Apple watch III, but the Apple watch 4 only for atrial fibrosis, and then they stopped testing smartwatches.

And only Rob ter Horst continued to test smartwatches on YouTube. But why does he not use the most accurate reference devices, and the protocol which allows the most accurate testing, as the group of Milind Desai has chosen?

Rob ter Horst has an education as a scientist at the highest level, published papers at the highest level, and works in a resarch institute at the highest level. But why does he not choose tests at the highest level as the group of Milind Desais did for testing smartwatch accuracy, and why does Rob ter Horst publish his results only on YouTube?