A futuristic AI-based app to diagnose sleep apnea with a smartphone

Apnéal is a very promising French application to facilitate the detection of sleep apnea, a very widespread pathology – 20% of us are affected – and very underdiagnosed, because 80% of patients do not know it.

The revolution is that the French application APNÉAL, currently under development, to detect sleep apnea, does not need to communicate with electrodes, bracelets or any medical equipment: a piece of adhesive and a smartphone are enough, knowing that 90% of current phone models are compatible.

The app relies on a microphone and two sensors, an accelerometer and a gyroscope. They each provide 1,500 measurements per second. Severin Benizari, one of the three co-founders of APNEAL, explains to francinfo how to install the smartphone, fully charged and in airplane mode, before going to sleep:

“It is located on the chest, the microphone is towards the mouth, fixed with an adhesive bandage on the pajamas, which can be found in any pharmacy, which makes the examination completely accessible. The sensors of the phone will allow us to record. The movement of the rib cage – when the chest is inflated. is and deflates – heartbeat, as well as breath sounds.”

Tapped on smartphone pajamas

When you wake up, this data is sent to the APNÉAL servers, where it will be analyzed, using artificial intelligence algorithms and models created by the start-up, studying patients equipped with both smartphones and polysomnographs, reference medical measurements. Device

How can we determine the scientific and clinical value of these applications under development? I put the question to Dr. Justine Frieda, a pulmonologist and sleep specialist at the Sleep Center at Bichat Hospital in Paris. After the first test on 45 patients, she is leading a clinical study this time on 500 patients in three countries (France, Spain, Germany), with results expected in mid-2025. Doctor Frida insists on seriousness and “Very good contract” Between estimates provided by APNÉAL and polysomnography. The creators of the start-up estimate the reliability at 90%. And so, in nine cases out of ten, the results coincide.

Less than 50 euros for the exam

The ultimate goal for the application: certification of the software as a medical device, and CE marking, a long and complicated process that can take up to three years. In the meantime, the APNÉAL team aims for September 2024, to allow volunteers to test the application before the start of marketing – price hypothesis: less than 50 euros per test – and hope for a possible 70% covered by social. Security.