Security System for the Heart

A new, experimental monitor can be implanted in heart patents to transmit cardiac data to doctors by a telephone hookup, helping patients avoid unnecessary trips to the emergency department.

The new monitor, called Chronicle, is about the size of a folded matchbook. A sensor attached to the monitor is threaded through a vein into the heart's right ventricle, where it measures heart rate, heart temperature, and blood pressure inside the heart. Patients pass a magnetic wand over their chest to signal the device to transmit data to their doctor. Similar technology is used by pacemakers, although most of the information transmitted is limited to the condition of the pacemaker and its battery.

"A quick look at the data transmitted from the monitor often is all that is needed to rule out a serious problem in the heart and save the patient some anguish and perhaps an unnecessary trip to the hospital,” said principal investigator Dr. William Abraham, director of cardiology at the Ohio State University Heart Center (OSU, Columbus, USA). "It's giving us a head-start on treating problems that often would not show up until after a visit to the hospital and invasive testing.”

Chronicle is the product of Medtronic, Inc. (Minneapolis, MN, USA) and has not yet been approved for general use, although patients are being enrolled in studies now under way.




Related Links:
OSU