Hi all, I got a kardioMobile the other day and have recorded about a million 30 second heart sessions. I just wanted to know how people rate them?
I find in my case it goes in and out of AF, or more correctly I do.
Do you find them accurate? I've been in AF a fair but recently with no symptoms which is why I bought it, but was interested in others' accounts of the readings it gave and what they think.
Thanks.
Im following as have been considering buying one too
I bought one, but have only managed to capture a couple of ectopics, and if your HR is above 100 it gives an unclassified reading even if you are clearly in sinus rhythm.
Also , won't detect flutter, and you can become a bit obsessed with it.
Oh, and my kids can hear a high pitched noise when I'm using it, it drives them mad.
Personally I've found it to be pretty useless
Me too,not impressed.Didn't show I was in flutter either.Some people find it very useful though...
Mine gives me unclassified ALL the time. Says the reason “may be” due to pulse over 100. At first, when I was in rhythm, it worked great. Now, I just know my pulse is 127😳
I was actually diagnosed using it and that was before they introduced the AF filter so I think it’s great! I tend to be very symptomatic when I’m in AF so don’t really need the monitor to confirm it. However,it has provided me with a really good record of my episodes to discuss with the Cardiologist. It also appears to be pretty accurate in identifying and differentiating between different sorts of ectopics. The reports you get tend to be formulaic but I have found it a very useful tool. Also,I have never noticed any noise so maybe there is a setting you can switch off.
I found them excellent. I believe it saved my husbands’ Life. If you are going in and out of AF - that is what it will show. My EP thinks the traces very useful. To get a good trace you must hold very still and rest arms on a table or cushion, have a good contact - alcohol gel on your finger will improve the contact,
There is a danger to become a bit obsessive - it’s a tool - the real skill and helpfulness of the tool lies within the user.
Oh and mine definately shows Flutter & a many other oddities which have been really useful for my EP.
And no noise - Mikee69 that sounds very odd! Have you beeen onto Kardia about that?
No, I haven't. It uses ultrasound to transmit I believe. I think she would hear any kardia in operation.
I on the other hand have been to far too many rock gigs and have ruined my hearing.
Oh, and £10 a month to store your results , ok I don't doubt there should be a charge but I'd like to be able to upload the results to my own storage
I am told by a rival that dogs can hear it and that dog whistles confuse it so if your children have fantastic hearing Mike I don't doubt they will notice it.
Without seeing me take the kardia out she will say she can hear it. I have no doubt that she can!
You can email the results to yourself to keep a record of tracings.
I got mine 18 months ago. All my readings are stored in the Kardia app and I don’t pay anything. £80 one off purchase payment only.
You can upload to your own storage, I think you convert to PDF first. It is only designed to show AF but with a bit of knowledge you can recognise ectopics and Flutter. My cardiologist and EP advised ablation partly on the evidence from my Kardia which showed significant pauses.
No need for conversion. The instructions are a little unclear, but if you select 'email' you can simply store the file anywhere you have the rights to, I use Dropbox. That way, I can view them on any of my devices/computers and send them to anyone I want to.
I agree with CDreamer . I find my Kardia invaluable. It comes into play whenever I feel something is going on and confirms my suspicions. I have shown my readings to GP and hospital doctors.
Also proved very useful when my husband went into AF a week into a course of Naproxen ( ibuprofen) and it stopped as soon as he stopped taking this drug. Needless to say Naproxen is definitely to be avoided now as are all similar painkillers.
Personally I found the Kardia invaluable. I use it when I have an episode and when I saw my EP, the readings which are stored on my mobile phone can be shown.
As for the noise I would contact Alivecor. I don't think anyone here has the same problem of noise when in use.
If you are not in AF it will give an unclassified reading which is showing there is something wrong with your heartbeat, other than AF. Bear in mind the Kardia was made for reading AF only.
Be well
Phil
I bought one recently as my cardiologist told me I had AF but my EP said Atrial Tachycardia was on my notes. I was able to take a reading and e mail it to him, confirming the AF diagnosis. These devices are now being rolled out to some GP surgeries in my area (Hampshire, Dorset and IOW).
My GPs have not been impressed, need some education I fear. My new GP said she needs a proper ECG before she refers me back to my cardiologist, hope she wouldn't have minded if I had gone to A&E on Christmas Eve to get one.......
How frustrating for you! I can guarantee my heart will never play up during a 'proper ECG. Hopefully all GPs will eventually see the benefits. I bought mine due to the enthusiasm of the GP who attends our local patient support group. My work colleagues think it is great fun but have not found any undiagnosed AF yet!
My Kardia has been very useful. Must admit as a nurse I was very impressed on the clarity of the reading from just using finger tips, I’m used to leads all over the place!
My cardiologist was able to confirm that my recent AF episode were in fact just ectopics, though even more recently they do look and feel more like AF. The software I don’t think is very accurate in its diagnosis, with me it usually comes up with ‘possible AF’ or normal when there are clearly ectopics. But if you can print out the reading then I think it’s an invaluable tool. I did not realise you can store read outs for a one off payment of £80 as mentioned in one of the reply’s , something I think is far too expensive, but you can email your results as long as you have a signal.
If you do use one you really need to relax while taking a reading, no talking for 30 Seconds, good job my wife doesn’t need to use it!
Thank you everyone, for some good answers that (mainly) coincide with my experience thus far. I have a month's free premium usage and after that I have to pay, not sure how much. It is good that you can share the results with others and doctors, etc. Could be invaluable.
I think I was too impatient with it at first, trying to take readings with my kids running riot all around me, being too agitated, etc. Just the act of using it seemed to cause higher HR and undesirable results as well. Now, I make sure I'm relaxed and in a quiet place, and make sure my hands and forearms are properly supported, or else I put it under my phone and hold my phone up with it by a couple of fingers on each pad.
I suspect I'll be semi-obsessed with results and frequent testing for a week or three, but it's very comforting knowing you have this resource at hand. Thanks again for all your answers, and sorry to hear of the couple of people for whom it didn't seem to work.
You don't "have to pay". It's your choice whether you buy storage from them, or store your results elsewhere. I use Dropbox as I already had a (free) account there. You may well have someone else's free account (Google, Microsoft etc.) that you are not using. Simply have their folder on your phone/tablet, and email it into that, and it will magically appear on all your devices with access. From the file, you can send it to anyone you like, or print it out.
My Kardia has been a godsend to me and my EP,it has enabled me to give him accurate readings when I was going into af and supra ventricular tachycardia, fortunately I have no further need of it now as have had AV node ablation and now pacemaker dependant, this has made so much difference to my quality of life.
I’ve had mine for over a year, and was a bit obsessive about it for a while. But it comes in so handy to catch odd events. It’s easy to save a pdf of the event to be reviewed by your doctor. Also helps you to learn what different events look like on an ekg, so better able to know what you’re heart is doing. My cardiologist has tried mine and was impressed with the readings.
And here’s an I tersting new app we might see soon: Mobile Application Detecting Atrial Fibrillation Reduces the Risk of Stroke buff.ly/2Jt6CTs
they are excellent and our medical director diagnoses all sorts of heart problems with it when we run screening events in our town!
I've found it excellent and accurate - it confirms to me when I'm in AF and when I'm not. It helped the cardio diagnose AF. I checked it a lot when I first got it, but that soon tapered off and now I only use it occasionally when I suspect I might be in AF. I make sure I always have it with me.
I agree with many above. It is excellent. My EP and GP are both impressed. It is only programmed to actually diagnose 3 things: Possible AF, Unclassified and Normal Rhythm, but if you print out the trace it can be interpreted by a cardiologist who will see other rhythms if any exist. For example, my husband is getting arrhythmia which is impossible to capture by the hospital as it is infrequent and unpredictable. But we caught one on the Kardia and the EP looked at it and said it was likely to be AVNRT.
Also when the EP has asked in the past if I'm sure I'm still getting AF, the Kardia readings confirm it.
I don't pay ongoing costs. I email the results to myself and store the PDF on my computer.
I was urged to buy one after seeing an EP. I know when I get an episode -I was woken shortly after 1am this morning and used the Kardia so I could send a copy to the EP. I took a flecainide pill (though mine usually stop after a short time on their own) and it was fine by the morning (I sent that one to). I was told they are fairly accurate unlike the blood pressure monitor I had already which indicates irregular heartbeats but apparently not accurately enough! I had to buy an i-phone too and it has been quite stressful getting used to that which hasn't been very helpful. If you are i-phone literate it should be a breeze for you and be helpful but not if you get addicted to taking readings as it seems you might be!
Stop being a junky!
A few questions
First post here (36M) - my story and questions
