• by Les Luchter , March 1, 2024

“Atrial fibrillation (AFib), a common heart rhythm, often goes undiagnosed due to its fleeting nature,” begins “The Sound of AFib,” a new short film from Omron healthcare, marketer of personal blood pressure monitors and other home medical devices .

“Left undetected,” the 4-minute, 45-second film continues, AFib “can lead to stroke and heart failure. To raise awareness of this silent threat, Omron united an AFib patient, a doctor and a composer. To learn and reveal…The sound of AFib.”

That sound -- composed by Dutch musician Steven Aswin -- turns out to be a piano piece, “Listen to Your Heart,” that Omron says translates the patient’s electrocardiogram (ECG) into music that evokes a “heartbeat in harmony until AFib disrupts the heart’s natural rhythm."

Besides hearing Aswin debut the piece in front of the patient and cardiologist, the film also explains AFib, uses the patient’s case history to demonstrate what the cardiologist calls “the random nature sometimes of these things,” and ends by suggesting the use of Omron devices to “listen to your heart” and thus identify the condition early.

Japan-based Omron tells Marketing Daily that it has launched “The Sound of AFib” globally through an alliance of multiple agencies, including its main creative agency in Hungary.

The film is running on both Omron’s YouTube channel and a dedicated AFib awareness campaign website, and has been translated into multiple languages, including French, Italian and Japanese. Media relations efforts, the company says, have in the past month resulted in more than 350 news sites in the U.S. alone posting the film along with their coverage of the campaign.

Social media promotion and influencer partnerships are also being used to drive viewership, Omron says.

Omron’s AFib campaign extends to “engaging medical professionals and encouraging more dialogue on AFib, its stroke risk, and its symptoms,” the company adds.

The film’s success is currently being measured by “film views, results from our global media relations outreach, social content reach, and metrics from our teams engaging medical professionals,” Omron says.

A larger Omron “Going for Zero” mission to eliminate heart attack and stroke, the firm says, will ultimately be measured by outcomes: ‘”We are working to raise awareness, encourage more diagnosis, support effective treatment and, ultimately reduce the strokes caused by arterial fibrillation.”

Omron launched Complete, the first blood pressure monitor with built-in ECG, five years ago. More recently, the marketer introduced an app called Connect, allowing users to send ECG readings directly to their doctor.

“Using Complete whenever you are feeling your heart suddenly race or flutter with anxiety can help catch AFib readings that are often missed at the doctor’s office,” Omron says. “Having that data can focus additional testing to properly diagnose and treat the condition with the potential to reduce the high stroke risk associated with AFib.”

“Heart diseases and stroke are the leading cause of mortality…yet 80% of cases are preventable,” concludes “The Sound of AFib.” “With Omron’s AFib screening devices, you can uncover early warning signs of stroke.”