NewsLocal News

Actions

Woman says her smartwatch saved her life

Posted at 8:15 AM, Oct 01, 2019
and last updated 2019-10-01 09:15:46-04

They track everything from your steps to how you sleep. But can they save your life?

If you have them, you know, smart gadgets can be a convenient option for keeping tabs on your health.

There are all kinds of devices on the market that track heart rate, rhythm, blood pressure and more.

The little things in life, like baking or relaxing with your pet, that become just a little more special after you bounce back from a health challenge.

And Debbie Copeland-Bloom had one of those.

"When we caught this, my heart function was at 25 percent," Copeland-Bloom says.

She says her ticker wasn't getting the right electrical signals which hurt how it pumped blood.

What were her symptoms?

"I didn't feel anything..," Copeland-Bloom says.

But Debbie did notice something on her smart watch.

She changed the settings to show "Beats per minute" and the numbers she saw were troubling.

"It was saying that my heart was at 155 to 165 beats per minute all the time," Copeland-Bloom says.

So she bought another device that tracked the same thing.

Copeland-Bloom says, "Cause I did not believe I had a high heart rate."

Turns out the second backed up the first, so Debbie called her doctor who ran some tests and sent her to the ER.

Cardiologist Jefferson Burroughs says Debbie's smart watch helped them catch a potentially dangerous heart rhythm, and may be one of the first cases of a smartwatch saving a life.

"I believe that the watch saved my life," Copeland-Bloom says.

Dr. Burroughs say, "That's probably not a high number just yet, but that number is gonna grow as access to devices increase."

What quickly is becoming more standard using available gadgets track a heart rhythm remotely, and transmit the info back to physicians.

"These types of devices help us more frequently manage arrythmias we know exist," Dr. Burroughs says.

It's real time, real life data, not just doctor's office data.

For Debbie, the watch is really watching.

Copeland-Bloom says, "I know at least one person who bought a watch because of what happened to me."

Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere.

Download our free app for Apple and Android and Kindle devices.

Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox. Select from these options: Breaking News, Severe Weather, School Closings, Daily Headlines and Daily Forecasts.

Follow us on Twitter

Like us on Facebook