How to get my ECG data?

1 points by fraserphysics 335 days ago | 3 comments

I wore a heart monitor for a month and want the data. I've called and exchanged email with "Bio Telemetry, a Phillips company", and all I've received is a stack of paper with a "Daily Patient Report" for each day. (Well I've also received a statement from BCBS saying that they won't pay Bio Telemetry $9,000). My first/primary question to HN is:

Do you have advice on how to get the actual data?

My second question for non-US readers:

Does $9,000 seem excessive?

Background: For 10 minutes in April I was seeing double. Fearing that it was a transient ischemic attack, MDs ordered lots of tests. The heart monitor was to check for arrhythmias that could cause a clot. I was surprised that the study found ventricular tachycardia; see: https://www.fraserphysics.com/page2_ecg_report.pdf

Coincidentally, I have been thinking about ECGs and have written code for analyzing them; see Section 6.3.1 of my book at https://www.fraserphysics.com/book.pdf. My third question is for anyone who knows about ECG analysis technology:

Is the analysis technique I describe in Section 6.3.1 interesting/novel?

PS. None of the test results are very disturbing. I believe that my event was related to the migraines that I have all too often.

Bender 335 days ago |

I do not know the answer to your specific question but I do know there are consumer 6 lead ECG's that one can purchase [1] for much less than the amounts you are talking about. Some of them are stand-alone [2] and some require a cell phone.

For 10 minutes in April I was seeing double.

There are many things that can cause this unrelated to the heart and should be looked into by a doctor. I am not a doctor and this is not medical advice. Even staring at a screen too long can cause temporary diplopia and there are nutrient/mineral deficiencies that can exacerbate this unless you mean you were going cross-eyed and there are multiple things that can cause that. Don't panic, talk to professionals. I personally would start with an ophthalmologist and nervous system specialist (that is one person).

just an example, there are many of these, not medical grade but don't need to be for your doctor to see if something is off.

[1] - https://www.amazon.com/KardiaMobile-Personal-Device-Heart-Mo...

[2] - https://www.amazon.com/EMAY-Portable-Channels-Compatible-Sma...

fraserphysics 333 days ago | |

Thank you for your reply.

I am also not a doctor. I have an appointment with a specialist MD. My PCP was initially alarmed, but after some research and consultations believes that I am not in immediate peril.

Unfortunately the devices that those links point to would not provide 24 hours of continuous data. The data that Phillips won't give me is a continuous record of about 720 hours with a few small breaks. The interesting event was one 2 second interval in the middle of one night.

Bender 332 days ago | | |

There are wearable 24 hour ECG monitors but I have no idea how accurate or sensitive they are. Perhaps your PCP can suggest one and hopefully not take you to the bank with their expensive solutions. What I do not like about the wearable devices is that they tend to use the cell phone to synchronize data and that can and most likely will lead to data-leakage with 3rd parties.