The AVA bracelet is a wearable designed mainly for all those couples who are looking for pregnancy, since it incorporates a technology capable of monitoring nine physiological parameters that track the menstrual cycle in order to detect the five most fertile days of the woman .
It was unveiled in the United States last summer, and is now available for the first time in Spain through its website, at a price of 249 euros . As explained by the Swiss medical technology company behind the bracelet – also called Ava – this is the first wearable device designed “to monitor, visualize and understand the menstrual cycle in real time. Either because a woman wants to become pregnant, or simply because she wants to better understand her body, Ava provides a level of information that has never before been available outside of clinical settings. “
But how does this bracelet work? Its sensors monitor nine physiological parameters : heart rate at rest, skin temperature, heart rate variability index (HRV), sleep, perfusion –process of blood distribution to body tissues-, respiratory rate, movement, heat loss and bioimpedance – which measures the resistance of body tissue to very low electrical voltages. All this data is entered into an algorithm to find your fertile window.
89% accurate
The user only has to wear the bracelet while sleeping and synchronize it with the app the next morning to be able to consult the data related to her menstrual phase . Thus, “the discomfort of other fertility methods such as ovulation tests or basal thermometers are avoided”, underline its creators, who explain that the bracelet has been tested during a one-year clinical study at the University Hospital of Zurich, led by Dr. Brigitte Leeners, an expert in the mathematical modeling of menstrual cycles. During this investigation, 37 non-pregnant women between the ages of 20 and 40 were followed.
According to their results, the wearable is capable of detecting an average of 5.3 fertile days per cycle with 89% accuracy , “compared to ovulation prediction kits, which detect only between 1 and 1.5 fertile days”, they point out. A second clinical study is currently underway.
The gadget is not only intended for women who are planning to become pregnant . According to Lea von Bidder, co-founder of Ava, “Many women are not aware of the information their menstrual cycle can provide about their overall health. Before, obtaining certain data about the cycle was so complicated that only women trying to become pregnant had to go through it. With Ava, we make it easier than ever for all women to get information related to their menstrual cycle. “
