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> it is a novelty I'm sure those millions of people who have hospital-grade ECG machines at home have no need for this toy, but for those few who don't, it sou
by sho 8y ago
> it is a novelty
I'm sure those millions of people who have hospital-grade ECG machines at home have no need for this toy, but for those few who don't, it sounds like an absolute game-changer that could really save lives. The best medical device, like the best camera, is the one you actually have with you when you need it - and as someone who has occasionally worried about what feels like a weird heartbeat, I'll be buying this "novelty" instantly.
- badloginagain 8y agoI would expect seniors to be a sizable portion of Apple Watches. Being FDA approved for tracking health would be a huge draw for this audience. Watch Apple implement a subscription service to call emergency contacts in the event of a health event detected by the Watch.
- waterphone 8y agoIt does this by default without a subscription service in the event of a detected fall if you do not respond to an alert within a certain amount of time. Hope nobody falls on their watch and are uninjured but break the touch sensor, preventing them from being able to cancel the 911 call…
- jdminhbg 8y agoI would imagine you could press the digital crown to cancel as well.
- macintux 8y agoIt only calls 911 if it detects no movement after a fall, so it would have to be the motion sensors in the device that completely fail, not a touch sensor.
- waterphone 8y agoI was referring to the failure of whatever mechanism would be used to cancel an alert that appears post-fall.
- macintux 8y agoMy point is that there is no immediate need to cancel anything if you are moving.
- mereel 8y agoYou're right -- I thinking more of a clinical context, which is definitely the wrong frame for this. From what I've read online, it only seems to detect AFib, which is obviously useful since I think it's the most common abnormal rhythm. Maybe it's only able to detect AFib since it's just on the wearer's wrist? I wonder if there are plans to make little wireless sensors pads to mimic having more leads. That'd be pretty cool
- macintux 8y agoAFib detection is, IIRC, available even without an explicit ECG session.
- FireBeyond 8y agoMany times you can detect Afib with just your fingers on the radial pulse, as a "regularly irregular" heartbeat, skipping every third or fourth beat.
- aesclepius 8y agoThe fact that it can pick up on A. Fibb, but likely track and save strips of SVT can at least get the user to a medical evaluation with a licensed physician. It's a big deal, as a medicine resident, this could be a game change for a large segment of the population.