Smartphone Platform Survey-Scale Heart Rate Collection: a Performance Evaluation in Ethiopia

Abstract

Heart rate variability (HRV), a common method of assessing human autonomic status calculated from the heart beat over time, has traditionally been collected in laboratory based models unsuitable for mass or survey-scale collection. Here, we field-trial a solution for the collection of heart rate data, using a photoplethysmographic sensor via a smartphone platform in a pilot sample (n=679). Internal and test-retest reliability of the data over time is excellent, reproduces expected demographic relationships (age/gender vs. HRV) and compares favorably to existing experimental models. The system is suitable for future work in development economics, to assess cardiac / autonomic health in parallel with survey measures of economic development.