LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. — A Lee’s Summit woman said a heart monitor which sends info directly to her doctor saved her life.
Linda Lamson had a condition named Atrial Fibrillation, which doctors call AFib for short. The condition creates an irregular heartbeat which can lead to strokes and heart attacks.
Lamson uses a mobile monitor called Kardia AliveCor. It connects to her smartphone to measure her heartbeat like an EKG machine at her doctor’s office.
At a restaurant last year, Lamson said she felt funny and the device confirmed her heart was offbeat. She said having that notification saved her.
“Absolutely. I went and saw someone right away. I actually ended up in the emergency room that night,” she said.
What sets Kardia AliveCor apart from other mobile EKG devices is it can tell you whether your heartbeat is normal or not. And Saint Luke’s Health System says it’s the first hospital in the area to sync the system to its cardiologists. So every time Lamson tests her heartbeat, her doctor can see the results.
“Without having this technology, we would be having to have her come into the office more often, or we'd have to send her more monitors which Linda mentioned earlier is actually quite expensive,” said Dr. Sanjaya Gupta, a cardiologist at Saint Luke’s who treats Lamson.
The AliveCor costs about $90 dollars up front and then $60 a year. Gupta said sending an EKG machine to a patient can cost hundreds of dollars per month.
Being able to check her heart rhythm at any time takes the worry out of day to day life for Lamson.
“It gives me peace of mind. It really does,” Lamson said. “In the morning I'll take it and, ‘Oh it's normal.’ Then if there's any time I feel it's not, I'll take it again and it'll give me peace of mind.”
Thursday marked the end of heart health month in the United States. Dr. Gupta said Lamson’s heart is in great shape.
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