Mobile technologies allow high-risk cardiac patients to look after themselves at home
Patients at high risk of cardiac arrest can now be closely monitored at home through a smartphone app that transmits vital signs to their health-care team. An increase in weight, for example, may prompt an intervention call from the doctor’s office, says Dr. Heather Ross, a cardiologist at the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre at University Health Network, which is implementing the mobile technology.
“We find out the patient had dim sum or pizza – something that is notoriously high in salt content. His weight goes up as a result,” notes Dr. Ross. “It becomes a teachable moment for the patient.”