The relentless Apple Watch gets the user to the emergency room just in time

The Apple Watch gave a user two alerts on the same day, saving their life in the process

But the routine that Ken had with his Apple Watch changed last October. He tells the story. “I received an alert in October that my breathing was increased. So you basically have a certain number of breaths per minute, basically saying I went from 14 to 17 or 18,” Counihan said. “My wife asked me to call my son and he suggested I go to home care and get it checked out, which I did. And they were doing an x-ray. And they gave me medication for bronchitis at the time.”

So Counihan figured he got off pretty easy despite the warning from his Apple Watch (bronchitis isn’t a walk in the park, but it does come with a serious heart condition). But the Apple Watch is stubborn once it detects a problem. The same day he was diagnosed with bronchitis, the device’s blood oxygen meter kicked into action. Once again, Ken gives us the play-by-play.

Had he ignored his Apple Watch warning, Ken Counihan would likely have died overnight

Luckily for Counihan, his Apple Watch was working 24/7 (no pun intended) warning him of his SP02 level. The doctors said it was a good thing that Ken went to the ER. That’s because 60% of people who have this condition at the same stage as Counihan go to sleep and don’t wake up the next morning.

dr Franjic said she sees more patients coming to the ER with test results from their smartwatches and other devices. She says, “We have patients who come in and they notice these trends, like ‘my heart rate is faster than usual’ or ‘it shows me that… I have an abnormal rhythm’ can only help the doctor diagnose the underlying problem and to prevent life-threatening emergencies from occurring.

Not only does Counihan credit the Apple Watch for saving his life, but he also has friends who bought the device because of what happened to him. “I had dinner with a friend the other night… and now he wants to get an Apple Watch too. She saved my life. It’s incredible.”