A clinic in Basel lets you send a recorded ECG from your Apple Watch for analysis by a real doctor. For just twenty euros, you will know even better whether there is something wrong with your ECG.
Apple Watch ECG Analysis
Since the Apple Watch Series 4 from 2018, the Apple Watch has included a 1-channel ECG. This makes it possible to diagnose atrial fibrillation. However, the function also provides a more detailed report: in the Health app on the iPhone you will find a cardiogram as a PDF, which you can also take with you to the doctor. A Swiss hospital is now offering to have that Apple Watch data analyzed by professionals – for a surprisingly low price.
Send your ECG and have it analyzed
The project is part of the Wearable Clinic in Basel, which is part of the university hospital there. With the ECG it is possible to diagnose other forms of cardiac arrhythmia, such as palpitations or an irregular pulse, and not just atrial fibrillation.
While the Apple Watch can provide some notifications about your heart health, including irregularities in your heart rhythm and a pulse that is too high or too low, the single-lead ECG recordings it produces should really be analyzed by a doctor.
Also read: How to make an ECG with your Apple Watch
Wearable Clinic Basel
The Wearable Clinic consists of doctors and technicians from the electrophysiology team; ‘leading experts in the field of cardiac arrhythmias’, according to the academic hospital. ‘After sending the ECG, you will receive a written report with a specialist interpretation of the ECG and a recommendation for further action’, the clinic says. The site also explains that it cannot detect or predict heart attacks or strokes. In that case, you should call the emergency services immediately – but that seems logical to us anyway.
Also other wearables
The analysis currently costs only 20 Swiss francs, or about 20 euros. You simply pay online. The Wearable Clinic is also conducting research on the subject – there are already studies published about the accuracy of detecting atrial fibrillation with a smartwatch and the usefulness of automatic interval measurements using a single-channel ECG. The data is stored on a server in Switzerland and is not passed on to third parties.
In addition to the Apple Watch, the Wearable Clinic also supports other devices. These include specific ECG devices such as the AliveCor Kardia Mobile, but also the Fitbit Sense, Withings Scanwatch, Samsung’s Galaxy Watch and ‘other brands and models’ that can issue an ECG report as a PDF.