“Since all medical interventions come with risks, many people will suffer harm from unnecessary tests and procedures.”
I agree with this statement generally, but in this specific case it seems tenuous. If the iWatch’s 1-lead EKG detected a-fib, the next course of action would be a more reliable diagnostic, specifically a proper 12-lead EKG interpreted by a qualified medical professional, perhaps followed by a Holter monitor to record 5 or more leads over a 48+ hour period.
A 12-lead involves attaching ten electrode stickers to a patient which are then wired up to a backpack-sized monitor which passively reads the difference in electrical activity between specific electrodes. It’s a simple non-invasive procedure that’s performed a hundred thousand times a day in the US. In fact, it’s so simple and low-risk that I as a lowly EMT am allowed to perform it. (To drive this point home, the state of California does not allow me to prick a patient’s finger to get the drop of blood required to ascertain blood sugar. I need a paramedic to do that for me.)
It’s absurd for this doctor to suggest an asymptomatic young person could be prescribed anticoagulants for a-fib “diagnosed” by an iWatch. I can understand doctors expressing opposition to “self-diagnostic medicine” but to make these arguments about a 1-lead makes as much sense as arguing that people shouldn’t be able to buy and operate a blood pressure machine without a prescription.