Apple Watch saves 13-year-old boy’s life

Apple Watch heart rate
(Image credit: Future)

The Apple Watch has been credited with helping all sorts of people detect heart problems and saving lives, and now the smartwatch may have saved the life of a 13-year-old living in Oklahoma.

Imagine you’re sitting at home as a parent and you receive a text message that says your son’s heart rate has just spiked to 190 beats per minute. That’s exactly what happened to Liz Joslin while her son Skylar was sitting in class in April of 2018.

The mother got a screenshot with along with a message saying: "Mommy, there’s something wrong. I’m not doing anything.”

This situation was surprising because Skylar is an athlete, who plays football, track and basketball. 

According to Oklahoma’s KFOR, the mother then picked up Skylar at school and his heart rate jumped up to 202 BPM during that time. It then skyrocketed to 280 in the middle of the night.

Skylar was diagnosed the next day with Supraventricular Tachycardia or SVT. This disease forces to hear to speed up. 

The boy then underwent a cardiac ablation, a surgery to help fix his heart’s rhythm. 

Skylar returned to the football field but he needs to wear a heart monitor until he has one more procedure.

Liz credits the Apple Watch for helping detect this dangerous condition.

“If I wouldn’t have gotten his Apple Watch, I don’t know that I would’ve ever known,” Ms. Joslin told KFOR. “I mean it’s unknown how long it would’ve been going on or how long it would’ve really taken.”

Mark Spoonauer

Mark Spoonauer is the global editor in chief of Tom's Guide and has covered technology for over 20 years. In addition to overseeing the direction of Tom's Guide, Mark specializes in covering all things mobile, having reviewed dozens of smartphones and other gadgets. He has spoken at key industry events and appears regularly on TV to discuss the latest trends, including Cheddar, Fox Business and other outlets. Mark was previously editor in chief of Laptop Mag, and his work has appeared in Wired, Popular Science and Inc. Follow him on Twitter at @mspoonauer.