Apple Watch irregular heart rhythm notifications are probably coming to Australia

Apple Watch ECG feature (Image credit: iMore)

What you need to know

Australia has approved the irregular heart rhythm notifications for Apple Watch.

Australian Apple Watch owners are a step closer to receiving support for the ECG app and irregular heart rhythm notifications following the news that authorities have now approved the wearable for such features.

According to an EFTM report, the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods has given Apple the go-ahead to add the feature to Apple Watch.

EFTM can report that the Australian Government's Department of Health run Therapeutic Goods Administration has approved the Irregular Rhythm Notification Feature of the Apple Watch and added it to the ARTG – the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods which allows that to be used in Australia.

There's no telling how long it will be before Apple Watches start to offer ECG functionality, but it's also important to note that there are still hurdles to be jumped before that can happen.

This does not mean the Apple Watch ECG function is medically certified for Australia, but it does mean Apple is submitting it's devices and software for testing and approval, something we've had no clarity on to this point.

Apple Watches and their ECG functionality have already been proven to save lives and the availability of the technology in Australia is something that can't come soon enough. Anyone wearing an Apple Watch Series 4, Series 5, or Series 6 will theoretically be able to take advantage of the feature once it has been sufficiently approved and rolled out.

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.