Management of heart failure improved by wireless monitoring of pulmonary artery pressure
THURSDAY, Feb. 10 (HealthDay News) -- New York Heart Association (NYHA) class III heart failure patients managed by a wireless implantable hemodynamic monitoring (W-IHM) system require fewer hospitalizations, according to a study published online Feb. 10 in The Lancet.
William T. Abraham, M.D., of The Ohio State University Heart and Vascular Center in Columbus, and colleagues evaluated the efficacy of W-IHM in class III heart failure patients at 64 centers. Patients were randomized in a single-blind study of W-IHM management or a control group for six months. Both groups had standard of care, while the treatment group clinicians also made daily pulmonary artery pressure measurements. The study end point was the rate of heart failure-related hospitalizations. Treatment safety was assessed by complications of the W-IHM system and the amount of pressure-sensor failures.
The researchers found significantly fewer hospitalizations among the treatment group (83 hospitalizations at six months, compared to 120 in the control group). During the follow-up period (mean 15 months), there was a 39 percent reduction in heart failure hospitalizations in patients from the treatment group compared to the control group. Safety end points were 98.6 percent freedom from device- or system-related complications, and there were no pressure-sensor failures.
"The addition of information about pulmonary artery pressure to clinical signs and symptoms allows for improved heart failure management and leads to a reduction in heart failure-related hospitalizations," the authors write.
This study was funded by CardioMEMS; several of the authors disclosed financial relationships with medical device companies, including CardioMEMS.
Abstract
Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)
Editorial (subscription or payment may be required)