![]() So, although doctors aren’t exactly recommending that patients go out and buy one of these, they say there’s potential-provided it works well and people use it correctly and with common sense. So, if the Apple Watch is accurate, it presents an opportunity for continuous heart rate monitoring that's less invasive. But that's obviously not common.Īlso, some patients require continuous heart rate monitoring, which is currently performed with a device implanted under a patient's skin, Dr. He sees one or two patients a year who found that their heart rates were off thanks to a consumer heart monitoring device and ended up learning they had an atrial fibrillation or other issue. Elmer also says some people may see a doctor for abnormal readings who wouldn’t otherwise have sought care. But any symptoms you experience would still require a visit to the doctor's office to sort out, and would likely involve more traditional testing.ĭr. If you have an irregular heart beat, a history of heart disease or heart attack, or a pacemaker, the Apple Watch's ECG could potentially provide helpful information for your doctor-especially if you're having symptoms outside of the doctor's office. Still, experts see some possible benefits to wearing a device like this. “In the past, devices like that have not been so accurate.” “In theory, it will provide the ability to monitor patients in real time but we don’t yet understand how accurate this signal will be,” Dr. But it’s hard to say how accurate the watch heart data will be compared to medical-grade monitors that doctors use until more information (and research) about the Watch's new capability is available. But the Apple Watch only gives you one ECG reading, according to the FDA's approval letter, similar to a Lead I ECG (essentially one part of the standard 12-part ECG). The ECG you'd get at your doctor's office gathers information from 12 areas of your heart, the Mayo Clinic explains. That, and other false positives, may lead to people rushing to the ER and flooding the medical system when they don’t need to, he says. But it could also give you a false positive and freak you out for no reason.Īdditionally, things that are normal and known to be normal to cardiologists could be alarming to an Apple Watch user, like the fact that your heart rate can drop down to 30 or 40 beats per minute when you’re sleeping (which would apparently trigger an alert). If you're not an athlete, having a watch that detects bradycardia could tip you off that something isn't right with your heart and prompt you to seek care, Dr. Long-distance runners, for example, are prone to having lower heart rates (bradycardia), Dr. Eimer worries "a lot" about the potential for false positives, or indications that something is wrong when it isn't.įor instance, while having a low heart rate ( below 60 beats per minute) can be a sign of a heart issue, thyroid disorder, sleep apnea, or a side effect of high blood pressure medications, in many cases, it's totally harmless-especially if you're a serious athlete. “It seems like a wonderful idea and I’m sure there are some potential upsides to it," Micah Eimer, M.D., a cardiologist and medical director for the Northwestern Medicine Glenview and Deerfield Outpatient Centers, tells SELF. I'll receive an alert from Apple Watch if my heart rate falls to 40 beats per minute or as high as 120 beats per minute.This seems great in theory, but doctors are a little wary. You can also set up high and low heart rate notifications to the parameters of your choosing. Apple, but it clearly doesn't want users to make important medical decisions on their own.įinally, you'll get some information about what to do if you are experiencing an irregular heart rhythm that might be atrial fibrillation. ![]() It won't track heart attacks, help you get off meds or replace your doctor, among other things. You'll then get a notification about everything that the Apple Watch does not do. Instead, it wants to help people who don't know they have it take the first step to get a diagnosis: About a quarter of the 2.3 million people who have atrial fibrillation won't experience any symptoms. Apple doesn't want its device to be the primary monitoring tool for people who have a medical condition that puts them at a higher risk of strokes and other potentially fatal outcomes. If you have, the irregular rhythm feature is not for you. You'll notice fairly quickly that Apple asks if you're already been diagnosed with the condition. Personal Loans for 670 Credit Score or Lower Personal Loans for 580 Credit Score or Lower Best Debt Consolidation Loans for Bad Credit
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