February is American Heart Month, and Apple marked the occasion today with a Newsroom feature highlighting how the Apple Watch potentially saved the life of 59-year-old Bob March. In short, the Apple Watch alerted March to irregular heart rate readings that ultimately led to doctors discovering that he had arrhythmia.
Bob was gifted the Apple Watch by his wife Lori for their anniversary. "We truly believe that it saved his life," she said. "It doesn't get any bigger than that."
The story:
Bob, a former college-level athlete who also ran half marathons as an adult, immediately started exploring his new Apple Watch. He discovered the Heart Rate app and though he was relaxed, his first reading showed 127 beats per minute. That was high for Bob, but he brushed it off as a fluke.
"I thought, 'this is nuts,'" Bob says. "If I was easing into a run, or cooling down, I'd definitely be hitting numbers like that."
Later that day, Bob and Lori noticed more erratic heart rate readings. "I started running and it started going down but then it would come back up. So that's when I realized something may not be right here."
The couple saw similar patterns over the next few days, prompting Lori to schedule an appointment for a routine physical.
"I figured the doctor would tell me to practice breathing, try yoga, cut back on sodium or something of that sort," says Bob. "Instead, 10 minutes after meeting with me, he had me in an ambulance headed to the ER."
Doctors found an arrhythmia, which caused Bob's heart to work in overdrive. They said it was like he had been running a constant marathon for the past few weeks and if left unchecked, the results could have been devastating.
March ultimately underwent successful heart surgery, and after a few months, he is now thankful to be back to running alongside his dog. It's yet another example of how the Apple Watch's health features potentially saved a life.
