Empirical Health for Watch 17+

Finally an health app that’s actionable!

Love that this app uses my watch app data with an actual doctor to help me better understand and manage my conditions!

Please, don’t use an app to diagnose POTS…

It’s great that POTS is getting more awareness. However, POTS is more than an effect of long-Covid. It’s been glamorized since Covid because of the uptick in patients who present with it. Apps like these tend to offer “quick diagnoses and fixes” but in reality, if you do suspect you have POTS, it is better to go to an actual doctor (preferably cardiologist or neurologist) who specializes in autonomic testing. There are several other types of dysautonomia that have similar symptoms and these conditions are managed differently. These are physical tests, you can’t self-diagnose. It’s not a diagnosis you particularly want, either, if that’s not actually the condition you have. POTS patients are continuously gaslit and we have a systemic problem with getting doctors to believe our symptoms. Without the autonomic testing to back up your diagnosis, it will be much, much harder to find the right treatment that works best for you. There are also different subcategories of POTS. Some have low blood pressure, some have high. If you recommend “increase salt” to those with high blood pressure, it’s not safe without regular check-ins with your doctor to monitor your overall health in conjunction with any treatments you’re doing at home. Stay safe 👌🏻

Developer Response ,

Hi Mrs Jackson! In our programs to get tested for POTS, you always receive
medical care from a real board-certified doctor. These programs also include physical tests: orthostatic vitals, ECG, and blood tests. Some of these can be performed at home with the aid of an Apple Watch or other smart devices, and some are performed at a local lab.

To address your specific concern about blood pressure, our at-home sit-stand procedure includes measuring blood pressure using a wireless cuff. This guides both the diagnosis and treatment decisions, such as what medication to prescribe. As for autonomic testing, our Chief Medical Officer wrote a more detailed guide on when people need to do a tilt-table test: https://data.empirical.health/p/do-i-need-a-tilt-table-test-to-confirm

Obviously, we believe medical care has to be rigorous and trustworthy. And we hear from many patients who are frustrated that they've been gaslit by the medical system--that's why we built this app, so that patients can get empathetic medical care and live their best lives.

Let me know if that answer makes sense! Feel free to email us: [email protected].

Just use the Health app

Doesn’t really provide any additional information from the Apple Health app. I got suckered into the free trial and forgot to cancel. Now I’ve paid for an app that repackages information Apple already presents in a very consumable way. Additionally, some of the information presented is just wrong - I.e. presenting a low resting heart rate as something you should be concerned about when they have the data to see that your active and the low heart rate is a result of your fitness. Don’t make my mistake…

Developer Response ,

Hi! Just a few things Empirical does that the Health app does not:
- Testing & treatment for POTS, proactive heart health, hypertension, and sleep apnea (in areas where we offer doctor appointments--currently most of the US).
- Correlations - explore correlations between your metrics.
- Customized workouts to improve VO2Max or recover from long covid.
- Interpretations of what's normal and tools to help you uncover causes (e.g., sleep hygiene and sleep apnea risk analysis).

Obviously, there's more we have planned for the future--I'd love to hear your feedback on what more you were hoping to see. Feel free to email us at [email protected].

As for low resting heart rate, while it's true that athletes can have a low heart rate and be healthy, even in athletes, bradyarrhythmias are possible. That's why we highlight it as something to at least check with either your doctor (or an Empirical Health doctor) -- better to be safe than sorry.

If you'd like to cancel your subscription, feel free to email us at [email protected] and we'll get you sorted out.