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There was a legendary cardiologist at my medical school who predicted his own demise, took a Holter monitor home with him one night, wired himself up, went to s

There was a legendary cardiologist at my medical school who predicted his own demise, took a Holter monitor home with him one night, wired himself up, went to sleep, never woke up, and left his colleagues with the 12-lead trace of his death.

ramonakira 7y ago
> the 12-lead trace of his death What does this mean?
- BillinghamJ 7y ago
  A 12-lead ECG report/graph/whatever it's called. 12 wires collecting data (versus eg the Apple Watch implementation which is equivalent to a 1-lead ECG)
  - dathinab 7y ago
    I wouldn't be to sure the Apple watch is even comparable to 1-lead ECG, simply due to the difference of how ECG is attached to you and how the Apple watch is. Through this doesn't mean the Apple watch can't be a useful addition, just don't rely on it.
    - jjeaff 7y ago
      I would imagine it is possible the sensor in an Apple watch is more sophisticated than a single ecg lead.
      - oaiey 7y ago
        12 lead ECG is just a technology. There could be other techniques. However, the Apple Watch might be comparable to higher number of leads but never be identical to the number of leads. Except, when you wear additional bracelets at your both legs, the other hand, both shoulders and another 6 on your chest. Then yes ;). And consider the continuous cyborgization of our society, that is not that far away. The 12 lead ECG is about detecting the electrical impulses of heart beats from different angles of your bodies. If you found a technology to detect these mV values from a meter away ... tell me ;) We will be rich ;)
      - megous 7y ago
        You can do only so much with a single signal. There's a reason ECG probes are attached to multiple points on the body, and you can infer quite a bit of info from just comparing multiple signals alone, including if you have your heart flipped, for some reason. :D You'll not get that from your watch.
      - BillinghamJ 7y ago
        Apple state that it is equivalent to a 1-lead ECG.
- clort 7y ago
  12 wires attached to his torso, recording all the electrical impulses from various points, tracing out a graph. They call this an electrocardiogram (ECG) but the one I had for a medical didn't have 12 leads just 5 or 7 I think.
  - JshWright 7y ago
    A 12 lead is actually 10 wires (the "leads" are then comprised of various combinations of those wires). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einthoven%27s_triangle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einthoven%27s_triangle
- luxuryballs 7y ago
  Number of wires connected to points on his body for ECG he recorded on himself.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
PeterStuer 7y ago
It is a reference to the number of electrodes attached to the monitor. A 12 lead setup can provide a much more detailed signal and thus be used in different diagnostics than a lower lead obtained trace. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538203/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538203/
runamok 7y ago
I find this confusing. If he was so sure of his imminent death why not do the same thing in a hospital room where you had a chance of survival. Unless he had this sense multiple times and was finally right this time...
- bacon_waffle 7y ago
  He may have been choosing quality over quantity. Thinking of deaths of people I've known; dying at home in bed seems preferable to most. "Being Mortal" by Atul Gawande is an excellent book on this subject.
  - Filligree 7y ago
    Doctors know how awful dying in a hospital can be, and once you're there they won't let you change your mind.
- okmokmz 7y ago
  Reminds me of this story https://www.pri.org/stories/2015-11-10/he-documented-his-own-death-snakebite-instead-going-hospital https://www.pri.org/stories/2015-11-10/he-documented-his-own...

ramonakira 7y ago

> the 12-lead trace of his death What does this mean?

BillinghamJ 7y ago
A 12-lead ECG report/graph/whatever it's called. 12 wires collecting data (versus eg the Apple Watch implementation which is equivalent to a 1-lead ECG)
- dathinab 7y ago
  I wouldn't be to sure the Apple watch is even comparable to 1-lead ECG, simply due to the difference of how ECG is attached to you and how the Apple watch is. Through this doesn't mean the Apple watch can't be a useful addition, just don't rely on it.
  - jjeaff 7y ago
    I would imagine it is possible the sensor in an Apple watch is more sophisticated than a single ecg lead.
    - oaiey 7y ago
      12 lead ECG is just a technology. There could be other techniques. However, the Apple Watch might be comparable to higher number of leads but never be identical to the number of leads. Except, when you wear additional bracelets at your both legs, the other hand, both shoulders and another 6 on your chest. Then yes ;). And consider the continuous cyborgization of our society, that is not that far away. The 12 lead ECG is about detecting the electrical impulses of heart beats from different angles of your bodies. If you found a technology to detect these mV values from a meter away ... tell me ;) We will be rich ;)
    - megous 7y ago
      You can do only so much with a single signal. There's a reason ECG probes are attached to multiple points on the body, and you can infer quite a bit of info from just comparing multiple signals alone, including if you have your heart flipped, for some reason. :D You'll not get that from your watch.
    - BillinghamJ 7y ago
      Apple state that it is equivalent to a 1-lead ECG.
clort 7y ago
12 wires attached to his torso, recording all the electrical impulses from various points, tracing out a graph. They call this an electrocardiogram (ECG) but the one I had for a medical didn't have 12 leads just 5 or 7 I think.
- JshWright 7y ago
  A 12 lead is actually 10 wires (the "leads" are then comprised of various combinations of those wires). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einthoven%27s_triangle https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einthoven%27s_triangle
luxuryballs 7y ago
Number of wires connected to points on his body for ECG he recorded on himself.
deleted 7y ago
[deleted]

PeterStuer 7y ago

It is a reference to the number of electrodes attached to the monitor. A 12 lead setup can provide a much more detailed signal and thus be used in different diagnostics than a lower lead obtained trace. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538203/ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538203/

runamok 7y ago

I find this confusing. If he was so sure of his imminent death why not do the same thing in a hospital room where you had a chance of survival. Unless he had this sense multiple times and was finally right this time...

bacon_waffle 7y ago
He may have been choosing quality over quantity. Thinking of deaths of people I've known; dying at home in bed seems preferable to most. "Being Mortal" by Atul Gawande is an excellent book on this subject.
- Filligree 7y ago
  Doctors know how awful dying in a hospital can be, and once you're there they won't let you change your mind.
okmokmz 7y ago
Reminds me of this story https://www.pri.org/stories/2015-11-10/he-documented-his-own-death-snakebite-instead-going-hospital https://www.pri.org/stories/2015-11-10/he-documented-his-own...