A 36-year-old British bestselling author, Adam Croft, has been saved by his Apple Watch. Croft who lives in Flitwick, Bedfordshire, is a famous author whose books have sold more than two million copies. He said he was able to get to the hospital to get his heart condition diagnosed because his Apple Watch warned him of irregular rhythms in his heartbeat.
According to Croft, he felt dizzy one evening and went to his kitchen to get some water. While in there, he “felt the world closing in” and he managed to lie on the floor where he broke out in a pool of cold sweat. He said he managed to get himself into bed much later and slept off till the next day. He had his watch strapped on throughout the night.
Croft said he woke up the next day to find that his Apple Watch had been alerting him every two hours to warn him of atrial fibrillation (AFib). He said he had experienced little flutterings in his heart before this time, but the watch did not alert him to anything serious – largely because he had no symptoms whatsoever.
The bestseller called up the National Health Service on 111 and they told him to “get to the hospital within the hour.” He reached Bedford Hospital and two electrocardiograms (ECGs) confirmed that the author actually had atrial fibrillation and that his Apple Watch had been correct in detecting his failing heart condition.
An irregular heart rhythm can cause strokes, blood clots, and eventual death in anyone. Some of the symptoms include shortness of breath, dizziness, unexplained tiredness, chest pain, and palpitations among others. The symptoms are not always so obvious and they can be overlooked, said Chloe MacArthur, a senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation.
The hospital gave Croft blood thinners and placed him on a cardioversion procedure that uses quick, low-energy shocks to correct the rhythm of his heart. Doctors warned him to watch his stress levels since his condition may repeat itself or worsen over time. He thanked his Apple Watch for saving his life, noting that he would not have called the hospital or gone in for a check if the device had not alerted him to his irregular heart condition.
“It’s not a feature I’d ever expected to use,” Croft said of his watch. “The watch will be staying on now.”