The Apple Watch may be able to alert wearers to heart palpitations, but Google LLC’s Pixel Watch 3 can now detect when a user’s heart stops – and call emergency services. The pulse detection featured received clearance from the U.S. FDA on Feb. 26 and Google plans to make it available on its Pixel Watch 3 starting in March. Pulse detection is already available for watches sold in the U.K. and EU.

Reflecting a positive reception in the market, Kestra Medical Technologies Ltd. increased the target haul for its planned IPO from $100 million to between $140 million and $160 million in an S-1 amendment filed Feb. 26. The company will offer 10 million shares at $14 to $16 per share, with the final price to be set the week of Mar. 3, just ahead of the offering date.

The first patenting from Theta Neurotech Inc. sees the company’s co-founders describe their development of a wearable earpiece that uses an electroencephalography technology and machine learning algorithms to alert epilepsy patients 30 to 60 minutes before they have a seizure.

The latest patenting from Canan Dagdeviren seeks protection for their wearable, conformable ultrasound breast patch that enables standardized and reproducible image acquisition over the entire breast with less reliance on operator training and applied transducer compression.

Dexcom Inc. put real money behind expanding its integration efforts, with a $75 million investment in the $200 million series D for Ōura Health Oy, the maker of the Ōura smart ring. Ōura and Dexcom also provided details on a strategic partnership that integrates data from Dexcom’s continuous glucose monitors with vital sign, sleep, stress, heart health and activity data from the Ōura ring.

Electrocore Inc. Quell(ed) any concerns about its commitment to the bioelectronic health segment with an agreement to acquire Neurometrix Inc., maker of the Quell, a wearable device and cloud-enabled neuromodulation platform to treat fibromyalgia and lower extremity chronic pain. Neurometrix is expected to divest its other primary product, Dpncheck, a point-of-care screening test for diabetic peripheral neuropathy, prior to the acquisition.

U.K. researchers at Nottingham Trent University, the University of Southampton and University Hospital Southampton and product development company Zelemiq Ltd. developed a wearable sensor that accurately monitors and detects changes in people’s breathing without requiring direct contact with the skin.

Movano Inc., dba Movano Health, added some clinical-grade glitz to its Evie ring with a U.S. FDA clearance for the built-in pulse oximeter. Movan’s stock shot up from an all-time low within minutes of the announcement on Dec. 2, as the clearance breathes new life into Movano’s plans to position the ring as a medical device.

A new position paper from the International Society of Hypertension pinpoints the benefits and drawbacks of novel blood pressure management technology, including the latest cuff-based and cuffless and wearable devices like BP-measuring watches and rings.