Apple Watch alerts 30-year-old dad about dangerous heart condition

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Apple Watch alerts user of irregular heart rhythms in sleep
Apple Watch may have saved another person's life.
Photo: Apple

A 30-year-old British dad and “fitness fanatic” was recently alerted to an irregular heart beat by his Apple Watch.

Chris Mint’s physician told him that it was unlikely that he was suffering from atrial fibrillation. However, using a five-minute ECG test on his Apple Watch convinced his doc otherwise.

“I’d owned the watch for about two years before it notified me that I had symptoms of Afib,” Mint told The Sun. “I didn’t have a clue that it was capable of doing that until it just popped up in July.”

Doctors subsequently referred him to specialists who discovered two leaking heart valves. He will soon undergo surgery to correct them. Without his Apple Watch, he noted that he could have suffered a stroke or heart attack.

“Buying the watch was the best money I’ve ever spent,” he said. “I’m grateful. Really grateful.”

When Mint’s wife contacted Tim Cook, the Apple CEO replied to her message. “I’m glad your husband sought treatment and is fine now,” Cook wrote. “Thanks for sharing his story — it inspires us to keep pushing forward.”

Apple Watch alerts people of heart issues

The Apple Watch has been saving lives since day one. Much of this has involved Apple Watch’s heart-reading ECG tech. An in-depth study carried out by Stanford University shows that the Apple Watch can adequately identify atrial fibrillation.

Apple didn’t predict how important health-tracking tech would be to the Apple Watch, COO Jeff Williams said in an interview published over the weekend. However, Apple CEO Tim Cook has said that Apple’s health focus might now be Apple’s lasting legacy.

It’s not always about heart-reading tech, though. Earlier this year, an 87-year-old woman was saved when her Apple Watch called emergency services after she was involved in a car accident. An Apple Watch also potentially saved the life of a man stuck hundreds of feet offshore in Lake Michigan.

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