Wrist based continuous heart rate monitor good idea or bad

[Sue1955]

Hi I would like to ask does anyone use and found good, a wrist based heart rate monitor like Fitbit etc. I really can't make up my mind is it a worthwhile investment, if you do use one and found it good for peace of mind I would love to hear which one.

Thanks fellow AF members

Sue

[Hidden]

Hi,

I have the Fitbit HR. I love it. It is a peace of mind so you can see what the heart is up to. If I feel dizzy I have a look and am reassured when everything ok. It is also great to see what has been happening overnight and during exercise.

I also like it as the app keeps you on track health wise with the step count, exercise log and water drinking counter.

Note it wont show A F it will just show a very high rate or wont register a pulse. But then in some ways that is registering it! The HR is the cheapest one to take pulse other ones do not.

Hope that helps.

Richard

[foxglove1 in reply to Hidden]

Hi

I agree with Richard and have had my Fitbit HR for over a year and love it. I use it constantly for exercise, but best of all as I have PAF I use it to check my heart rate. This is very reassuring for me.

I also have an app on my iPhone called Arrhythmia Alliance. I use this to check my heart rate too. I checked the accuracy with my Fitbit HR and they both record the same heart rates.

Keep well

Julie

[Sue1955 in reply to foxglove1]

Thanks Julie that's a great help.

[Sue1955 in reply to Hidden]

Thanks Richard my AF is paroxsymal or intermittent I do have the Alivecor (now Kardia) which is excellent infact that's how I ended up getting diagnosed as in my case catching it at dr or cardiologist proved difficult, so taking kardia readings to dr who sent them to my cardiologist clinched it, most of my episodes wake me in the night last 1hr or so then I return to normal rhythm. But it's the peace of mind as to what happens all day I know I can go from 56 - 90 by just moving about a little and this is why I was wondering about the Fitbit HR to know more of what is happening.

Thanks Sue

[Perrylees]

Hi Sue

I have a fit bit ( the cheapest one with the heart monitor) and find it really useful. It's not only reassuring but it is very helpful in working out what exercise raises your heart rate and to what extent. I think a lot of us are a little nervous about things like this!! It gives a basic readout of what your heartbeats been up to over the course of the day and when you have been in fat burning or cardio exercising zones and also calculates your resting heart rate daily. However, I'm now in sinus rhythm due to my ablation - so I'm not sure how or if it would work when in AF - I suspect it might go loopy!! I'm sure somebody else on the forum will know...?

I also have an Alivecor ( now called Kardia) which is brilliant and I would thoroughly recommend this - although of course it's slightly more difficult as its not permanently on your wrist. I have mine stuck to the back of my iPhone though and I've found it immensely reassuring but it also confirmed my worst fears immediately when I went back into AF (after cardioversion and before my ablation) - I wouldn't be without it even though (fingers crossed) I don't really need it at the moment!

Hope this helps

Ruth

[PeterWh]

See my comments on the previous post - Is this 'normal' AF? - and some older posts

I have not checked an AliveCor against Fitbit.

Note that inaccuracies are higher when someone is in AF as opposed to someone in NSR.

[Jonathan_C]

My wife has a fitbit and personally i don't think it accurately records her HR (or maybe she has AF!). I use a Polar H7 chest strap which syncs with my iPhone (and can sync with other phones). For the purposes of monitoring AF i would recommend that over a fibit.

Saying that - I am surprised to see the positive responses about the fitbit ... so don't take my advice as being authoritative!

[Sue1955 in reply to Jonathan_C]

Thanks for your reply all info is helpful.

[Deeferdi in reply to Jonathan_C]

I have a Polar FT4 chest strap which I wear daily. When first diagnosed with AF, the traffic policeman and paramedic couldn't detect a pulse but said they knew I was alive as I was talking lol! I was told that your heart rate can be high but not necessarily a strong beat so that's why I went for Polar rather than Fitbit HR, thinking that the Fitbit might not detect the pulse in my wrist when in AF.

[Reb500]

I have a Fitbit and a polar watch with chest strap. I find that the Fitbit does fine when I am wandering around the house or working at the office and for providing general heart rate averages but it misses big changes and is significantly off when I exercise. I rely on my polar watch to let me know if my heart rate is going too high during exercise and if I start to feel lightheaded pull out the kardia/alivecor to see what is going on. I like the Fitbit for general health monitoring (how long you slept, how well you slept, whether you get up enough during the day, etc) but personally haven't found the Fitbit sufficiently reliable for a fib monitoring.

[Kodaska]

I've done some comparisons of various strapless heart rate monitors and I find that they all have accuracy problems except for those made by Mio. mioglobal.com/

I'm interested in tracking my HR while exercising. I also want to use it when I'm asleep to get a sense of what's happening with what I think are ectopics, as well as to spot any evidence of sleep apnea. However, the strapless monitors that track sleep aren't very accurate. I'll continue to hold off until I hear of one that's both accurate and has the features I want.

If accuracy isn't that important to you, Fitbit is OK, but I suggest you look into others. As I recall, Fitbit has been outpaced by several.

[RickyM]

Hi Sue,

I have persistent AF and I have a Mioglobal-Alpha2 wrist watch. I want to know what my pulse rate is doing during various activities rather than not know. I like to use it occasionally overnight to monitor my pulse rate and see if there is any change over time. I use it at the gym as well although I have no idea if it is accurate at all times..........how can you be without comparing with multiple devices at the same time? My concern is that in the gym it can suprise me with high 180+ readings when I feel fine. I am very cautious when this happens and make sure it comes down again below 100 before I start anything else.

If I check against a conventional finger pulse reading it is very accurate.

Hope this helps.

[j14777]

I have a fitbit HRM. It still works, after about one year. However, the time function has quit. The blue tooth radio has stopped working. Money down the tubes?