Apple Watches, particularly the series 4 and new versions come with the most advanced heart health and fitness tracking features. We have reported numerous cases where Apple Watches have saved lives with timely notifications of irregular heart rate and car crash SOS emergency alerts, which helped them get medical aid in a quick time.
Now, Los Angeles-based Rachel Manalo shared her story with ABC on Wednesday (September 4) in the US.
When Manalo was 18 weeks pregnant, she began to feel her heart rate race on and off multiple times a day. She ignored the signs for next several weeks.
“I would feel tired, short of breath. I remember sitting down with the patient and giving a diagnosis. And I felt dizzy just sitting in my chair like I was about to faint,” she said to ABC.
At around 33 weeks in to pregnancy, Manalo again felt the heart rate racing and becoming uncontrolable. She immediately opened the ECG app on her Apple Watch to check if it showed any sign of irregularity in the heart rate.
The ECG app's result showed 'inconclusive'. And, she tried checking her heart rate on the Apple Watch. To her shock, the heart rate was said to be 150 beats per second. She immediately rushed to the nearest medical centre in Los Angeles.
Manalo was diagnosed with ventricular tachycardia. It is a potentially life-threatening heart rhythm disorder. It causes the lower chambers of the heart to beat too fast and this causes the heart to pump twice the amount of blood volume required for her and the baby. And, the oxygen wasn't getting to the blood.
Thanks to Apple Watch, the issue was detected in the nick of time. And, in the following week, Manalo undewent a C-section surgery.
"I told her (Dr. Nguyen), please, no C-section. But at that point, it was too late. My heart will not be able to handle a vaginal delivery,” she recalled during the interview.
Manalo delivered a healthy girl (Samantha) weighing around 4.5 pounds.
Though the Apple Watch saved the life of the mother and child, it is advisable for people to always consult doctors. And, also never do self-diagnosis by looking up on the internet for information on symptoms. When in doubt, always head to the nearest health clinic.
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