Kardia etc

[Fruitcake100]

Need advice on home BP monitors and more advanced ones like Kardia and Boots one at approx £100 . Thankyou

[Hidden]

Hello Fruitcake, first there are some basics to understand. A Kardia is not (as far as I know) a more advanced BP monitor. There are two types of Kardia available, the more basic model is a single lead ECG monitor used for checking you heart beat, the rate and its regularity. It tells if your is pulse is normal or irregular and possibly in AF. The latest 6 lead version is probably more sophisticated but some have said a little more temperamental. The main benefit is that it you have paroxysmal AF, you can immediately take a reading which most doctors will accept as confirmation that an AF episode has occurred. However, there are several types of Arrhythmia and the simpler version does not make the distinction about which type of Arrhythmia has occurred.

If someone is in persistent/permanent AF then the majority of home BP monitors are inaccurate and an average of 4 or more readings over a period of around 20 minutes will provide an approximation. The Omron range tends to be fairly popular and most models will detect an irregular heartbeat but will not define the type of Arrhythmia.

It’s a good idea to Google both to find out more but whichever route you decide to take, the important thing is not to become obsessive otherwise both could have a negative affect on your condition. Usual comment applies, not medically trained and personal view only but I hope you find it helpful.

[Fruitcake100 in reply to Hidden]

Thankyou for all the information

[Rubymurray25]

I use a basic Omron Blood Pressure machine from Boots which seems very accurate and is accepted by my doctor for an annual reading, it will not give a reading if in AF as the error sign will appear. I have just purchased a Kardia £99 and it is brilliant as it will let you know what is happening AF wise and gives the BPM. I do agree with Flapjack about not becoming obsessive with using it though!

[tunybgur]

Hi Fruitcake,

I have a HealForce PC80B, it cost about £80 on Ebay.

It comes with leads etc which can be attached to the chest, but I find it works fine by just holding it against the chest with a drop of water to get a good contact, press the button and it gives an excellent 30s trace of your heart rhythm clearly showing each element of the heart beat, very convenient and my doctor was very impressed with the quality of the readings.

It's obvious if the P wave is missing which is the key indicator for Afib, although you have to know what to look for to use this gizmo, because the short conclusion it gives at the end of each reading is not reliable, often saying all is well when it clearly isn't, also you can't send the result over the phone as you can with the Kardia, but it suits my needs as I have educated myself on this subject.

It can store hundreds of readings and they can be downloaded onto a PC, so you could email them if necessary.

For BP I use an Omron M2 basic, simple, accurate and not expensive

Good luck

[Ppiman]

I'm lucky to have been able to test several for a certain well-known seller. My experience is that the wrist ones are as accurate as the upper arm ones and are far more convenient. The Omron RS6 is the one I have, but they are all, I feel sure, equally good. Of the upper arm models, Withings and Omron work really well.

The Withings company have an upper-arm model with an ECG and heart valve monitor incorporated, which I found rather fiddly but overall is well worthwhile. Also Withings customer service proved excellent. My wife uses their Cardio body scales and really enjoys using these with their iphone app and feels that it truly encourages her to keep trim.

I have no experience of the Kardia device but it seems to work well and be generally appreciated by users. I use an Apple Watch which I find really excellent in so many ways and which, I imagine, is far more convenient - but it isn't cheap (although I think Amazon offer five months interest free credit).

Steve

[Fruitcake100 in reply to Ppiman]

Thank you so much for all the advice, it sounds as if it all works well, it is more about deciding which one is most use for my needs which i guess may well change as i get older, the Witherings one sounds good

but i suspect the quick wrist one is more likely to get used .

[Ppiman in reply to Fruitcake100]

The Omron wrist design is much more convenient and compact for sure. It's the one I use nowadays. I see the Braun is on offer today - it's a very attractive design but it didn't fit my wrist well. It might be worth trying as you can always return it.

Steve

[Hidden]

Kardia simple one is brilliant and for £5 you can get their own cardiologists to interpret the reading. My cardiologist says they are a godsend and they are using the simple one a great deal for regular quick readings. Best £99 I could spend

[LindaDaisy]

I’ve had a Kardia for years. Recommended by my EP. They say you can’t use it with an ICD but I’ve always found mine pretty accurate. I even sneaked in a reading after an ECG in hospital to check it. If you have odd rhythms like I had Atrial Flutter masked by Amiodarone which it called Tachycardia one day and AF the next, it doesn’t interpret what it is but it knows something isn’t right. If I’m feeling fine I don’t use it. If I’m feeling like something isn’t right then I use it and then put away until the next day. It’s taught me what feelings are arrhythmia related and which are hunger, dehydration, panic etc, so it’s built up my confidence.

[Magson]

My cardiologist recommend I purchase a Kardia monitor. Up to that point AF was not confirmed. Eventually, the Kardia results confirmed PAF soon after I bought one. A good investment for me.

[momist]

+1 for the Kardia (simple version). I don't use mine any longer, as I now have a Withings MoveECG step counting watch which is both elegant and suits my needs better, but the Kardia seems to be recognised by most medical people as the default device for a personal ECG monitor. You need an iPhone or Android smart phone, and they can be a bit picky about high end models with fancy noise cancelling microphone technology. Most cheaper phones or tablets will work well with it however.

Just a note: Don't count on any wrist worn device that monitors 'pulse' for heart rate using little lights on the back against the skin. These only average out a normal rhythm within normal bounds, and will not be accurate when in AF or any other abnormal beat.

[Hidden]

My GP surgery uses Omron BP monitors and recommends this brand. Kardia is probably the best device for detecting AF, tachycardia etc.. It is endorsed by the BHF and my GP has one which he uses with patients. As others have pointed out these devices are quite distinct - a blood pressure monitor will not produce an ECG, although some may detect AF. In addition to these two items I would also recommend a pulse oximeter.