How Powerful Is Apple Watch's Heart Rate Monitoring? Insights from Doctors and Patients

Editor’s Note: Since its market launch this April, the health monitoring features of the Apple Watch have attracted significant global attention. Although Apple removed previously rumored functions—such as sensors to measure skin conductance, blood pressure, and heart rate monitoring akin to an electrocardiogram (EKG)—from the official release, the retained heart rate monitoring capability and the robust HealthKit platform continue to offer healthcare professionals and patients a new experience in the era of internet-based healthcare. (Organized by VCBeat)Comprehensive Review of the Internet Healthcare Ecosystem: VB Star Issue 2, Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Special Topic, Has Launched, startup teams, investors, physicians, pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufacturers, and healthcare institutions in this field are welcome to contact us.) Below are the practical applications of Apple Watch in heart rate monitoring as experienced by two user groups (physicians and patients). 

★ Medical Experts: Apple Watch Can Be Used for Clinical Cardiac Monitoring

Dr. Eric Topol is the Chief Academic Officer of Scripps Health and Director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, both located in San Diego. Last month, a tweet he posted about his colleagues leveraging user-generated data from Apple Watches caused quite a stir in the industry—suggesting that patients can use Apple Watches for self-monitoring and diagnosis of heart disease:

Two weeks later, the tweet had been retweeted 130 times and bookmarked 84 times.However, there has been no shortage of skepticism regarding the application of the Apple Watch, a consumer-oriented gadget, in the professional medical field. Notably, Maneesh Juneja, who calls himself a “digital health futurist,” raised a related question: How many cardiologists would dare to use heart rate data that has not been clinically validated?

Indeed, few cardiologists today would dare to take such an approach. Yet, regardless of whether it has undergone clinical validation, even symptoms as seemingly minor as dizziness warrant attention from both patients and cardiologists, do they not? As Topol noted, his colleagues also used clinically validated medical devices to confirm the patient’s self-diagnosis.The sick sinus syndrome (SSS) diagnosed by the patient is a type of arrhythmia that clinically necessitates the use of a cardiac pacemaker. Without the data from the Apple Watch, would this patient have thought to take the time to search for these symptoms on Google and then consult a physician? ★Heart Disease Patient: Apple Watch Enables Rapid Hospital Admission and Discharge

Ken Robson (right) and his wife, Gigi. Photo provided by Robson

Ken Robson, a 64-year-old resident of Virginia, is the protagonist in the aforementioned medical case. Let us revisit how the heart rate monitoring feature on the Apple Watch helped him, this time from the patient’s perspective.In mid-June this year, Robson visited his son in San Diego. “During that period, I noticed persistent weakness, dizziness, and a rapid drop in my heart rate,” he said. “If you’re not an Olympic athlete, yet your heart rate drops into the 30s or 40s, that is definitely abnormal.” Realizing something was wrong with his health, Robson searched online and self-diagnosed himself with sick sinus syndrome, a type of arrhythmia.After reaching this conclusion, Robson immediately scheduled an appointment with his doctor in Virginia, planning to seek treatment upon his return home. However, the day before he was set to leave San Diego, he went to the emergency room at Scripps Mercy Hospital. “I didn’t want to risk an emergency medical landing—or worse, death—due to ‘that condition’ while on the plane,” he explained.Upon arriving at the hospital, Robson informed the staff that he had been tracking his heart rate using his smartwatch and had two weeks’ worth of data. “Providing the smartwatch data saved me several days of hospital stay,” he noted, adding that it also ensured he was scheduled for surgery almost immediately.The medical team at Scripps Mercy reviewed Robson’s Apple Watch data, confirmed his symptoms as sick sinus syndrome, and spared him the need to wear a cardiac monitor for an additional week.The procedure to implant Robson’s pacemaker was nearly as simple as an outpatient visit; he stayed overnight in the hospital and was discharged on the same day as the surgery, resuming his normal life immediately afterward. “My son is a bartender,” Robson said. “We went to the bar and even had a few drinks.”“In the hospital, everyone was very interested in [the self-diagnosis aided by the Apple Watch], though many were skeptical,” Robson recalled. However, Dr. Jerrold Glassman, the attending cardiologist, confirmed the diagnosis. “This is one of the rare cases where a patient correctly self-diagnosed their condition,” Robson stated.“I was observing [the heart rate changes] on my watch, while they were watching on [medical] monitors, and the readings were synchronized,” Robson said.A month and a half later, Robson reported that his heart rate and quality of life had “significantly improved” thanks to the pacemaker. “To say the Apple Watch saved my life would clearly be an exaggeration. I would say its presence greatly accelerated the improvement in my quality of life.”He added, “We are only just beginning to explore the various possibilities offered by the Apple Watch and other wearable devices.” Robson pointed out that as long as the device is connected to a mobile phone via Bluetooth, users can make calls on their smartwatches using voice commands. This feature can become a lifeline in emergencies when the wearer is unable to manually dial a phone.“It is these small improvements that gradually make our lives better,” Robson said. “This cutting-edge technology is very cool and truly exciting.” We will wait and see what the future holds.Presented by VCBeatComprehensive Review of the Internet Healthcare Ecosystem: VB Star Issue 2, Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Special Topic, Now Launched, we welcome startup teams, investors, physicians, pharmaceutical companies, medical device manufacturers, and healthcare institutions in this field to contact us.Compiled by Chen Xin | Edited by Mo Renying