Apple Watch Helps Heart Patient

Neil Versel reporting for MedCityNews:

Robson had a doctor’s appointment for shortly after he was to return home, but a day before he was scheduled to depart San Diego, he went to the emergency room at Scripps Mercy Hospital. “I didn’t want to be ‘that guy’ on the airplane” who caused an unscheduled landing due to a medical emergency, or worse, who died in flight.

When he got to the hospital, Robson told staff that he had been tracking his heart rate on the watch, and had two weeks of back data. “Going in with the data certainly reduced my stay by a couple of days,” he told MedCity News. It also assured that he could have the operation nearly immediately.

Because the hospital could check his Apple Watch data, Robson did not have to wear a heart monitor for a week before the medical team at Scripps Mercy could confirm the diagnosis of sick sinus syndrome.

Amazing. Because Robson was wearing an Apple Watch, he did not have to a wear a heart monitor.

At the hospital, “Everybody was interested [in this self-diagnosis with the help of the Apple Watch], but nobody was convinced,” Robson said. But attending cardiologist Dr. Jerrold Glassman confirmed the ailment. “This was one of the rare instances where the patient was right in self-diagnosis,” Robson said.

We’re less than 4 months into the existence of the Watch and we’re already seeing medical doctors accept this device as a self-diagnostic tool. Imagine what the possibilities are in just a few years when both the Watch and apps become better. It’s going to be incredible.

Wait, what am I thinking? This is a flop.