Aside from Apple watch, which smart watch can detect Atrial Fibrillation?

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What is Atrial Fibrillation and how is it related to Stroke? – Heart Vascular Centre

www.heartvascularcentre.com

During a normal heart rhythm, a specific group of heart muscle cells called the Sino-atrial node (SA node), will initiate the top chambers of the heart to contract and fill the bottom chambers of the heart with blood first. When the bottom chambers are filled with blood, they will contract to empty the blood so that it travels to the rest of the body. Usually, this rhythm is regular and coordinated to ensure proper blood circulation, with a heart rate of about 60-100 bpm (beats per minute).

However, during atrial fibrillation, the heart does not beat in synchrony anymore. Instead, the heart beats irregularly, causing the top and bottom chambers to be unable to coordinate to each other. This leads to the heart not being able to provide adequate blood supply to the rest of the body including the brain, at times, causing the patient to experience symptoms such as giddiness, shortness of breath, weakness and fatigue.

Often, atrial fibrillation can cause the heart chambers to dilate. The Left atrial appendage (LAA) of the left atrium (left top chamber of the heart), is a common place where blood pools and start to form clots in the heart. These clots can then be dislodged and travel through the circulation to the brain, thus causing a form of cardioembolic stroke.

Hence, patients who have atrial fibrillation are required to have their risk factors for stroke analysed by a cardiologist, and to decide if they are to start with anti-coagulant medications that will help to prevent blood from clotting to reduce their chance of having a stroke caused by the irregular heart rate.

One of such risk score is called the CHA2DS2-VASc Score.

Who are at risk of Atrial Fibrillation?

Atrial Fibrillation is the commonest heart rhythm disorder and affects millions of people around the world. The condition increases with age – it is very unusual in people below the age of 30 but affects as many as 1 in 20 (i.e. 5%) people over the age of 65.

People who have any of the following are at higher risk of developing atrial fibrillation:

Pre-existing heart conditions, such as hole in the heart, leaky heart valves or rheumatic heart diseaseHigh blood pressureOther chronic conditions, such as thyroid problems, sleep apnea, diabetes and kidney diseaseDrink alcoholObeseFamily history

One should seek for a Cardiologist’s advice when he or she experience heart palpitations (fast heart beats), that last more than a few seconds or more frequently, or that feels to be irregular. Additional warning signs such as giddiness, fainting episodes, breathlessness or chest pain should be brought into attention as well.

 

[Rogue Trader]

Are you sure a wrist sensor can reliably detect a life threatening cardiac aliment? Is the iwatch sensor more intrusive than other watches? or is it all down to just an app?

 

[laksaboy]

Irregular heartbeat. I've seen fellow NS slaves using that to get downgraded to PES E.

 

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Heart health notifications on your Apple Watch
You can enable notifications from the Heart Rate app on your Apple Watch to alert you to high or low heart rates and irregular heart rhythms.

High and low heart rate notifications
If your heart rate remains above or below a chosen beats per minute (BPM) while you appear to have been inactive for a period of 10 minutes, your Apple Watch can notify you. These notifications are available only on Apple Watch Series 1 or later.
You can turn on heart rate notifications when you first open the Heart Rate app on your Apple Watch, or at any time later from your iPhone:

1. On your iPhone, open the Apple Watch app.
2. Tap the My Watch tab, then tap Heart.
3. Tap High Heart Rate, then choose a BPM.
4. Tap Low Heart Rate, then choose a BPM.

Learn from the American Heart Association about what can cause a high heart rate or a low heart rate.

Irregular rhythm notifications
The irregular rhythm notification feature on your Apple Watch will occasionally look at your heartbeat to check for an irregular rhythm that might be suggestive of atrial fibrillation (AFib). Learn how to enable irregular rhythm notifications. Irregular rhythm notifications are currently available only in certain countries and regions. Learn where irregular rhythm notifications are available.
Here's what you need to enable irregular rhythm notifications

• Make sure that notifications are available in your country or region. Learn where irregular rhythm notifications are available.
• Update your iPhone to the latest version of iOS and Apple Watch to the latest version of watchOS.
• The irregular rhythm notification feature is available only on Apple Watch Series 1 or later.
• These notifications are not designed for people who have been diagnosed with AFib.
• These notifications are not intended for use by people under 22 years old.

How to enable irregular rhythm notifications

1. Make sure that the software on your iPhone and Apple Watch is up to date.
2. On your iPhone, open the Health app.
3. Tap the Browse tab, then go to Heart > Irregular Rhythm Notifications.
4. Once enabled, you can turn irregular rhythm notifications on or off in the Apple Watch app on your iPhone: Open the Apple Watch app, tap the My Watch tab, then go to Heart > Irregular Rhythm.

What to do when you receive an alert
If you receive a notification, the irregular rhythm notification feature on your Apple Watch identified an irregular rhythm suggestive of AFib and confirmed it with multiple readings.
If you have not been diagnosed with AFib by a physician, you should talk to your doctor.
How irregular rhythm notifications work
The irregular rhythm notification feature on your Apple Watch will occasionally look at your heartbeat to check for an irregular rhythm that may be AFib. This usually happens when you’re still to ensure a more accurate reading. Depending on how active you are, the number of readings collected each day and the time between these readings will vary.
What is AFib
AFib is a type of irregular heart rhythm. AFib occurs when the heart beats in an irregular pattern. It’s a common form of irregular heart rhythm where the upper chambers of the heart beat out of sync with the lower chambers.
According to the CDC, approximately 2% of people younger than 65 years old and 9% of people 65 and older have AFib. Irregularities in heart rhythm become more common as people get older. Some individuals with AFib don’t experience any symptoms. Others experience symptoms that could include rapid heartbeat, palpitations, fatigue, or shortness of breath.
AFib can be temporary or persistent, and people with AFib often live healthy, active lives. AFib episodes can be prevented through regular physical activity, eating a heart-healthy diet, maintaining a healthy weight, and treating other medical conditions that could worsen AFib. If left untreated, AFib can lead to heart failure or blood clots that may lead to stroke. AFib can be managed with a doctor’s care and medication, and early diagnosis and treatment can prevent such complications.
Learn more about AFib from the American Heart Association.
Things you should know

• Apple Watch cannot detect heart attacks. If you ever experience chest pain, pressure, tightness, or what you think is a heart attack, call emergency services immediately.
• The irregular rhythm notification feature on Apple Watch is not constantly looking for AFib. This means it cannot detect all instances of AFib, and people with AFib may not get a notification.
• If you’re not feeling well, you should talk to your doctor even if you don’t get a notification. Symptoms such as a rapid, pounding, or fluttering heartbeat, dizziness, or fainting, can indicate a serious condition.
• Do not change your medication without talking to your doctor.
• In some instances, the notification may indicate the presence of an irregular heart rhythm other than AFib.

 

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Heart rhythm monitoring with a smartwatch
www.health.harvard.edu

These wrist-worn devices are better than ever at gathering data. But it's still too early to use them to screen for atrial fibrillation.

The original wristband monitors were pretty basic: they tracked your movement and tallied your daily steps. But before long, these digital devices could also estimate your heart rate, thanks to a sensor that measures changes in blood flow through your skin. Now, there are smartwatches with special sensors that can record a tracing of your heart's electrical signature (electrocardiogram or ECG) and alert you if it detects an irregular rhythm.
Last fall, the FDA granted Apple approval for the ECG sensor and an app that includes an algorithm to detect atrial fibrillation, or afib, the most common heart rhythm disorder (see "What is atrial fibrillation?"). While the Apple Watch Series 4 is the first of its kind to offer this feature, other companies have similar technologies in the works.
Currently, some 50 million people wear activity-tracking devices, a figure that's expected to rise to more than 160 million as smartwatches become increasingly popular. "Using digital technology for personal health applications will soon become ubiquitous," says Harvard Medical School professor Dr. Peter Zimetbaum, director of clinical cardiology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. But using a smartwatch to screen for afib is premature, he says.

What is atrial fibrillation? Atrial fibrillation (afib) is a heart rhythm disorder that causes a rapid, irregular heartbeat. These bouts may occur for occasional, brief periods or much longer — even permanently in some people. About 2% of people younger than 65 have afib, while approximately 9% of people ages 65 and older have the condition. High blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes also increase the odds of having afib. Possible symptoms include shortness of breath, fatigue, and dizziness. But sometimes, it goes unnoticed. Recognized or not, this erratic heart rhythm can cause blood to pool in the heart's upper chambers. This increases the likelihood of clots, which can travel to the brain and block blood flow, causing a stroke.

Limitations to consider
The main reason is that the current algorithms to detect afib are okay but not great, says Dr. Zimetbaum. "Probably 30% of the data are uninterpretable or inaccurate," he says. This is partly because of factors that affect the ECG reading, including movement (of either the person or the smartwatch), environmental conditions such as lighting and temperature, and skin color. Also, your heart sometimes skips a beat or adds an extra one, and these harmless, so-called ectopic beats can throw off the reading.
For the average person, it might seem like the more information about your heart, the better. But for physicians, all that data present a serious problem. Doctors simply can't be fully available to review smartwatch ECG tracings sent by their patients. Interpreting the tracings takes time, especially when you need to sort through unusable data, Dr. Zimetbaum says.
Even if your smartwatch correctly pinpoints an episode of afib, you may still face a quandary. It's not clear what burden of afib — that is, how long it lasts and how often it occurs — must be present before the condition becomes worrisome. If an ECG in a doctor's office shows afib, odds are the person has had afib for a while, because it would be highly unusual to randomly catch a short episode during the 10-second test. But if a device that someone wears all the time picks up 15 seconds of afib, we don't know what to do with that information, Dr. Zimetbaum explains.
Treatment questions
To date, there is no evidence that finding unrecognized or "silent" afib will lead to better health outcomes, even among older people at risk for afib. Treating afib may involve taking anti-clotting medications, which increase the risk of bleeding. Doctors tend to prescribe those drugs when the risk of a stroke outweighs the risk of bleeding. But the stroke risk associated with silent afib isn't fully understood. However, ongoing studies should help clarify the issue, says Dr. Zimetbaum.
In the meantime, using a smartwatch that detects heart rhythms is reasonable for some people, he says. For instance, you could use the watch to record an ECG if and when you have symptoms such as palpitations or a rapid heart rate. (Note that it cannot tell you if you're having a heart attack.) But talk with your cardiologist about whether to use this tool for your particular situation, Dr. Zimetbaum advises.
Image: © Nastasic/Getty Images
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