17-Year-Old credits His Apple Watch for Saving His Life

A high school senior from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, said his Apple Watch helped to save his life after he fell ill during a football practice. The high school senior, Paul Houle Jr., said he started to have sudden pain in his chest.

Houle, Tabor Academy senior in Cape Cod, said after the practice, he went to take a nap. It was the time when his Apple watch showed that his heart rate was 145. Later when he went to hospital, he learned that he had heart, liver and kidney failure, which could have been fatal if not diagnosed on time.

The teenager said that if his Apple Watch had not shown him the heart rates, he would have not gone to hospital and the situation might have worsened.

According to doctors, Houle was diagnosed with rhabdomyolysis, a condition that occurs after intense exercise results in the leaking of enzymes and proteins into the blood from muscle cells.

They said that in some cases, the same situation can lead to kidney failure, and can also be fatal. When Houle arrived at the hospital, he was suffering from simultaneous heart, liver, and kidney failure, said the doctors.

Houle's father said he has recently purchased Apple Watches for both himself and his wife, after their son’s life was saved due to an Apple Watch.

After the story surfaced late last week, Apple CEO Tim Cook contacted Houle with a personal phone call a few days after his diagnosis and recovery. Houle also said that he received a call from Cook, and the Apple CEO has also offered him a brand-new iPhone and a summer internship at the company's corporate headquarters in Cupertino next year.