Kardia vs Fitbit: We have the fitbit... - Atrial Fibrillati...

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Kardia vs Fitbit

9 Replies

We have the fitbit but wonder what the Kardia does in comparison and have others found it worth having. Does the Kardia read when I am in AF - as the fitbit doesnt.

Thanks for any thoughts.

9 Replies
souljacs4 profile image
souljacs4

If you type Kardia in the search box top right you may find some answers

Finvola profile image
Finvola

I have a Kardia and wouldn't be without it. It recognises and traces AF and registers heart rate during episodes. You can set it to record for 30 seconds or, in steps of 1 minute, up to 5 minutes. PAC's and PVC's show up and it may give an 'unclassified', or 'possible Afib' report with anything that is suspiciously not NSR.

Kardia offer an analysis service for £5, which I've used twice and received a good analysis of something which turned out to be Sinus Arrhythmia. I use mine with an iPad, but I can imagine it is much handier for use with a smart phone as it is more readily at hand.

in reply toFinvola

Thank you Finvola - for the information. I think it will be worth my while to order one. Thank you again

Goldfish_ profile image
Goldfish_

A fitbit records pulse rate continuously, but doesn't have an ecg tracing or tell you if you are in AF. However it will tell you if your heart rate is abnormally high, which may indicate an episode of AF. It also gives you continuous information about walking steps and climbing floors etc. So in summary, the 2 devices do different things, but both may be useful

in reply toGoldfish_

Thank you Goldfish...thats explained it clearly for me.

Cdopat profile image
Cdopat

Let's just say that without Kardia, I would have had to undergo a minimum of one week of holter monitoring before my physician could have scheduled a second ablation. Instead, he looked at a five minute recording, said "yup, no "p" waves, high rate; looks like I can fix it!"

Paroxysmal means that every time you feel bad, and have rapid rates, you go to get an EKG and it shows perfectly normal rhythm! So there's that.

Rellim296 profile image
Rellim296

Surely Fitbit is for the normal heart and Kardia for the abnormal. One's a fitness aid and the other a diagnostic tool.

I have a Fitbit Charge HR ........ from what I see the two are quite different. Fitbit is a tracker. Kardia is diagnostic. But, I have my AF controlled so the tracker for me provides all the info I need. If my tracker provided me with data that showed the heart doing something outta the norm then I'd go to GP for an ECG.

John

resqme1065 profile image
resqme1065

I have a kardia. Purchased before I had my ablation. I don't know how the Dr. could monitor the success (or not) without this device. This is needed if you need new medications, etc.

I wouldn't be without it.

My Dr. reviews my tracings and lets me know if I'm in afib, extra beats, missed beats, etc. The only way they knew I needed new meds.

I wouldn't pay the Kardia people to read. My Drs PA and a specialized nurse look at all I forward

Judy

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