Source
r/AppleWatch•
Humangobo

Atrial fib false readings?

Discussion

Hey all, wondering how common false flags of atrial fib are with the Apple Watch..

The short of it is I had a notification of possible A-fib back in July, went through my doc and got a cardiology referral, they did an EKG and ultrasound and everything came back norm… the call I had with the cardiologist to talk about results was basically that because everything seemed normal and I hadn’t had any other warning of it for about a month and a half at that point, that he didn’t think there was any concern.

However since then, I got a notification last night of one, and apparently I missed one from Aug 13 as well… not sure if I should consider those another possible false flag, considering I’ve already gone through the process of tests (just short of wearing a sensor harness for a few weeks).

Ultimately wondering how common false readings are with these 🤷🏻‍♂️

Posted Sep 8, 2022, 9:42 PM UTC

29
noralindellS8 45mm Silver•

I would call the doctor (general practitioner) again and ask what they think you should do about it. Heart problems is something you really don’t want to miss. Better safe than sorry.

3
HumangoboOP•

I for sure don’t wanna mess with heart issues! Planning to talk to my GP or maybe even call the cardiologist directly since I already had the referral..

Just wasn’t sure how to interpret the readings and my lack of symptoms of anything (also only happens while I’m sleeping) 🤷🏻‍♂️

1
37E10BQ•

EKG and ultrasound were just preliminary “least invasive” tests. For patients who might get more Afib notifications, possible next step might be to attach a Holter monitor to them, which records an ECG type of reading for a longer period of time, hoping to catch any afib reading. If they haven’t already, they may check thyroid hormone levels, and at some point the cardiologist might consider doing a stress test, depending on age, other risk factors, and other symptoms.

Try to remember what you were doing every time you got a notification, what you felt, even the time that you weren’t aware that you got a notification, how much caffeine you had, etc.

For example, if turns out that the holter monitor shows occasional afib, and all other tests and symptoms are ok, a patient might be started on medication to keep their heart rate down.

2
HumangoboOP•

Hmm, thanks for the suggestions! It’s always happened in the middle of the night when sleeping, so I’ve never been aware of it happening 🤷🏻‍♂️

I’ve now planned to call my doc and maybe the cardiologist directly since I’d already gotten the referral, and look into the halter, as that was the next suggested course if I had any more issues.

Thanks!!

1
37E10BQ•

But just to clarify, again depending on your medical history, age and other risk factors, and lack of symptoms, and the (in)frequency of the notifications, doctors may suggest to hold off on doing any further testing, which is a perfectly valid and sometimes best approach, especially if the result of the test won’t change the treatment. They may just ask you to monitor yourself, keep wearing your watch, and report back if there are any changes. Every person is different and evaluated individually👍🏽

1
HumangoboOP•

Yes, and thanks for that info as well! I just gotta do my due diligence for the sake of being around for my wife and toddler kiddo as long as possible :)

1
zeazzz•

Definitely see your doc again. False negatives are very uncommon.

1
HumangoboOP•

Def gonna plan to do that now!

1
zeazzz•

Good luck. Hope all is well.

1