Overall , telemedicine was shown to be beneficial , with home-based teletransmission effectively reducing all-cause mortality and HF-related hospital admission , length of stay and mortality in patients with HF
Telemedicine interventions may be associated with reductions in hospital admission rate and mortality in patients with heart failure ( HF ) .
A randomized clinical trial of the clinical effects of enhanced heart failure monitoring using a computer-based telephonic monitoring system in older minorities and women.
BACKGROUND Prior studies suggest that disease management programs may be effective in improving clinical outcomes in patients with heart failure ( HF ) . However , the use of these programs in setting s with limited sources and among diverse population is not know . Thus the present study was design ed to assess the impact of a computer-based home disease management program ( Alere DayLink HF Monitoring System [ HFMS ] ) on the clinical outcomes of Medicare beneficiaries with HF who were elderly , women , and non-white males who received the care from a community-based primary care practitioner . METHODS AND RESULTS The Heart Failure Home Care ( HFHC ) trial was a multicenter , r and omized , controlled trial of HFMS versus st and ard heart failure care ( SC : enhanced patient education , education to clinicians , and follow-up ) . The primary study end point was treatment failure , defined as a composite of cardiovascular death or rehospitalization for heart failure within 6 months of enrollment . Among patients rehospitalized for HF , length of hospital stay was also considered a primary end point . A total of 315 patients were r and omized : 160 to HFMS and 155 to SC . Although the incidence of the primary outcome was somewhat higher in the SC arm ( 28.8 % versus 21.2 % , P = .15 ) , the difference was not statistically different . The length of hospital stay was also similar in both groups . CONCLUSIONS Our study results suggest that enhanced patient education and follow-up is as successful as a sophisticated home monitoring device with an interactive program in patients with HF who are elderly , women and non-Caucasian males and receive the care from a community-based primary care practitioner
Overall , telemedicine was shown to be beneficial , with home-based teletransmission effectively reducing all-cause mortality and HF-related hospital admission , length of stay and mortality in patients with HF
Telemedicine interventions may be associated with reductions in hospital admission rate and mortality in patients with heart failure ( HF ) .