Empowered Patient Podcast Expanding Access to Vital Cardiac Screening with Dr. Waqaas Al-Siddiq Biotricity
Dr. Waqaas Al-Siddiq, the CEO and Founder of Biotricity, focuses on remote patient monitoring for heart health with HeartSecure, the three-channel wearable device that collects continuous ECG data. This device provides a more comprehensive view of the electrical activity of the heart compared to other wearables like smartwatches and can help identify potential cardiac issues, especially those that are intermittent and asymptomatic. Used by cardiologists and now available as a home-based diagnostic, this technology is a tool to screen those with risk factors such as high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep apnea, and obesity.
Waqaas explains, "When we talk about wearables, we have to understand what those wearables are collecting. A typical watch, like an Apple Watch or Samsung Watch or these kinds of devices, collects data through a PPG, which is really looking at light refraction and basically looking at your pulse rate. Based on skin tone, it will have varying results. Based on how tight you are wearing the band, it will have varying results."
"The second problem and why the cardiac issue is the number one killer and why it's the silent killer is most of these issues are intermittent, and most patients are asymptomatic. So if you don't feel the symptoms, you could take that 30-second ECG all the time, and you may never catch it because many times, these issues happen while we're sleeping. They're happening early in the morning."
"The reason people are passing away is because many of these patients are screened is because when they are put on a monitor, sometimes you'll collect data on a patient for 24 hours a day for seven days. You'll not find the issue, and suddenly, you extend the monitor to day ten, and you'll find it on day nine. So how can you hold a device or a watch continuously for 24 hours, let alone continuously for nine days? And that's your challenge. That is why wearables are great awareness drivers. They're great tools if you've already been diagnosed and you're trying to manage your condition, but incredibly, incredibly blunt instruments when it comes to figuring out what your issue is."
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