The Star Malaysia - Star2

Growing acceptance

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At the press announceme­nt of the Apple Watch Series 3, Apple claims that atrial fibrillati­on affects tens of thousands of people and the condition is a leading cause of stroke but many people often go undiagnose­d as they do not experience any symptoms.

The watch is already smart enough to calculate users’ resting heart rate and recovery heart rate (how fast the heart takes to slow down after rigorous exercise) but when the first phase of Apple Heart Study is launched later this year, it will be the first personal device of its kind to provide alerts.

So is everybody to start wearing a heart monitoring system on one’s wrist as it can potentiall­y save lives?

If modern science reports are anything to go by, it would not be surprising if results of a subsequent study claim the dangers of wearing such devices 24 hours a day due to constant exposure to wireless technology or radio waves that are transmitte­d from the wrist devices to the owner’s smartphone­s.

Hence, it is too soon to say if wearing heart monitoring devices will be the new norm but as technology continues to advance in the modern age, there is certainly good reason to imagine the possibilit­ies – a heart monitoring device that, upon reading a slowing heartbeat, will send signals to a linked smartphone to immediatel­y call for an ambulance?

How about a device that records the user’s heart patterns for the entire month to provide downloadab­le data for doctors and physicians during hospital check-ups?

 ??  ?? Life-saving technology that fits in your pocket could be the future of health and early detection of heart disease.
Life-saving technology that fits in your pocket could be the future of health and early detection of heart disease.

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