Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

This is a great product for diagnosing cardiac rhythm problems, but this device is marketed as a "Medical Grade EKG", WHICH IT EMPHATICALLY IS NOT!. I am a Board Certified Emergency Physician of 46 years practice experience, and have read literally thousands of EKG's over the years in the Emergency Department. An EKG is twelve separate electical views of the heart, and is used as a standard part of Cardiac / Chest Pain evaluation in the Emergency Department. This device is a single limb lead and is quite useful for determining two things, RATE & RHYTHM. It cannot diagnose Coronary Heart Disease based upon the fact that it is a single lead rhythm strip. An EKG is twelve separate electrical views of the heart, not one. I wish to emphasize that this device will assist in the diagnosis of rhythm abnormalities, BUT IS NOT A MEDICAL GRADE EKG - WHICH IS EMPHATICALLY FALSE ADVERTISING!! Kardia Mobile can determine only the RATE & RHYTHM of the heart, but cannot substitute for a 12 lead EKG performed by a physician in an office or hospital setting. RATE refers to the number of beats per minute. RHYTHM refers to evaluation of the conduction system of the heart, e.g. Sinus Rhythm, First, Second, and Third Degree AV Block, Atrial Fibrillation, and Atrial and Ventricular Premature Beats. With the exception of Sinus Rhythm, these are conduction abnormalites of the heart. This is where Kardia Mobile really shines. Often patients only experience rhythm problems intermittently, and the Kardia Mobile device allows one to perform a Rhythm Strip duing the time frame when symptoms are occuring, such as when patients complain that their heart beat is irregular, or skipping beats. It is a wonderful device for diagnosing Rhythm Abnormalites, but is not useful in the setting of Chest Pain evaluation and determining the presence or absence of Coronary Artery Disease. It is a hugh mistake to think this little device is a "Medical Grade EKG" in the setting of evaluating Chest Pain. It cannot diagnosis a heart attack or Cardiac Ischemia when a patient is experience Chest Pain. To think of this device as a Medical Grade EKG is going to get someone hurt or potentially dead if they rely on this device in place of a Chest Pain Evaluation in the hospital where we take into account history, risk factors, Serial EKGs, Chest X-ray, Laboratory Testing and medical interventions such as Nitroglycering or Thombolysis when someone is having a heart attack. Kardia Mobile needs to change their marketing to reflect that this device is only useful for diagnosis of Rhythm Abnormalites and in determinging the Rate of the heart beat. It has no place in the evaluation of Chest Pain. Marketing this device as "A MEDICAL GRADE EKG" IS FALSE ADVERTISING and could well result in someone getting hurt as a result of the FALSE ADVERTISING. Kardia Mobile is only useful for determine the RATE & RHYTHM of the heartbeat and is not to be used in the setting of Chest Pain evaluation. This misunderstanding could lead the unknowing person to delay seeking appropriate evaluation of Chest Pain of Cardiac origin. J. Dan Weathers, M.D., F.A.C.E.P. - Board Certified Emergency Physician