Cardiac Monitoring Patch Helps Mom’s Life Stay on Beat
Since she was a child, Lauryn—a Baxter sales executive—managed a cardiovascular condition that caused her heart to beat irregularly fast and took her away from the moments that mattered most. When she was prescribed and used the diagnostic product she sold, she obtained a precise diagnosis that led to a lasting treatment.
Q: How did you learn about your heart condition?
Lauryn: When I was six years old, I was playing soccer, and suddenly, my heart started racing. They took me out of the game, but 15 minutes later, my heart was still beating fast, and nobody knew what was happening—or why. I went to the emergency room and learned it was likely SVT (supraventricular tachycardia), an arrhythmia (irregular heartbeat) that causes a rapid heartbeat.
Q: How did the SVT diagnosis change your life?
Lauryn: My doctors told me the condition wasn’t fatal but could lead to me passing out. It just became part of who I was. Every two or three months, my heart would kick off into SVT, lasting for about 30 minutes. It was kind of scary to people around me, but for me, it was normal. I just kind of dealt with it my whole life.
Q: What caused you to start taking your SVT more seriously?
Lauryn: As an adult, the SVT episodes became more frequent and lasted longer. It was concerning, especially if I was driving or out with my kids. As a result, I was missing out on moments with my family, and it was interfering with the fun things I wanted to do with my life.
I also thought… If my SVT is getting worse while I'm young and relatively healthy, what will it be like when I’m older and frailer?
Q: When did you get the diagnosis you needed to get effective treatment?
Lauryn: Initially, I got a smartwatch that could detect arrhythmia to catch it. But after I started working at BardyDx1 I wore the CAM Patch. The CAM Patch generates a report that identifies the specific type of SVT.
Sure enough, it caught an SVT episode that lasted about 30 minutes. I uploaded the device and received a phone call from the monitoring center within hours. They informed me that my heart rate was at 250 beats per minute for 40 minutes. A normal resting heart rate is between 60 to 80 beats per minute, maybe 120, when exercising.
I spoke to a medical colleague who talked through what he saw on the report. He recommended I speak with an electrophysiologist (EP)—a physician that treats abnormal heart rhythms—because my arrhythmia appeared to be treatable with cardiac ablation.
Q: What was the result of your consultation with the electrophysiologist?
Lauryn: The first thing he said after reviewing the CAM report was, "This is a really nice report!" He agreed I was a candidate for ablation, and I said, "Let’s go for it!" Other cardiologists had told me just to keep an eye on my SVT — this was the first physician who had a plan to treat it. I had an ablation in December 2020, and I haven't had an SVT episode since. It was cool to get a patient's perspective.
Q: How has having that patient's perspective changed your outlook and approach as a sales executive?
Lauryn: When I speak with clinicians, I can share my experience with SVT and how using the CAM Patch provided the right information to my clinician to inform a treatment plan. I see the CAM Patch as the gold standard for cardiac monitor data, and it's something that both clinicians and patients really value.
Indications, contraindications, warnings, and instructions for use can be found in the product labeling supplied with each device. CAUTION: Federal (USA) law restricts CAM patch sales except on the order of a physician.
1 In 2021, Baxter acquired BardyDx as part of its acquisition of Hillrom, a global medical technology leader with a portfolio of digital and connected care solutions and collaboration tools that includes smart bed systems, patient monitoring and diagnostic technologies, respiratory health devices, advanced equipment for the surgical space and other solutions that enable actionable, real-time insights at the point of care.