Skip to main content

A real time electrocardiogram for cardiac patients

Heart disease is the number one cause of death in Europe and early diagnosis is essential to save lives. Monitoring the heart’s rhythm and electrical activity in real time using an electrocardiogram (ECG) provides vital information about abnormalities and gives clues to the nature of a problem. Some cardiac conditions need long-term monitoring — inconvenient for patients as it requires them to be away from their everyday environment for indeterminate periods of time.
Six years ago, Latvian company Integris Ltd, a specialist in the development of mobile wireless telemedicine ECG recording devices, came up with the concept of an inexpensive, real-time heart activity monitor for personal use. Initially, the wireless technologies available were not a practical option for the device Integris had in mind, but when hybrid chips came onto the market EUREKA project E! 3489 HEART GUARD was born.

The HEART GUARD system comprises a lightweight, simple to use, matchbox-size device with five electrodes that are strategically placed on the wearer’s chest. The wireless device transmits data in real time directly to the patient’s pocket computer or desktop PC for instant interpretation by the system’s unique software. The low-cost device is discreet enough to be worn 24 hours a day, recording, analysing and reporting not only the rhythm and electrical activity of a patient’s heart but also his physical activity and body positions, as they go about their daily life. ‘Effectively, it is an early warning system,’ explains Juris Lauznis, Director of Integris, the project’s lead partner. ‘If HEART GUARD detects a problem, patients are alerted by means of vibration or a buzzer, prompting them to check their PC for further information and advice. At the very least, the device will help to monitor and manage a patient’s condition – and it could even save a life.’

Currently HEART GUARD is being developed for home use only, with patients monitoring their own condition and only contacting a doctor or hospital if the system identifies a cause for concern. HEART GUARD also has applications in a number of other areas, including telemedicine, sports medicine, patient rehabilitation following cardiac surgery or a heart attack and as a low-cost ECG monitoring system in hospitals and clinics with limited budgets.

With the 30-month project completed and clinical trials of the prototype successfully concluded by Kaunas Medical University’s Institute of Cardiology, the Lithuania Academy of Physical Education and the Research Institute of Cardiology at the University of Latvia, the next steps are to satisfy the EU’s strict compliance requirements for medical devices and then source a company to manufacture and distribute the system. If successful, the first commercial HEART GUARD devices could be on the market and saving lives by the end of 2008 or early 2009. Source: Eurekalert.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Charging Implanted Heart Pumps Wirelessly

Mechanical pumps to give failing hearts a boost were originally developed as temporary measures for patients awaiting a heart transplant. But as the technology has improved, these ventricular assist devices commonly operate in patients for years, including in former vice-president Dick Cheney, whose implant this month celebrates its one-year anniversary. Prolonged use, however, has its own problems. The power cord that protrudes through the patient's belly is cumbersome and prone to infection over time. Infections occur in close to 40 percent of patients, are the leading cause of rehospitalization, and can be fatal. Researchers at the University of Washington and the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center have tested a wireless power system for ventricular assist devices. They recently presented the work in Washington, D.C. at the American Society for Artificial Internal Organs annual meeting, where it received the Willem Kolff/Donald B. Olsen Award for most promising research in

Autism and Eye Contact: Genes very much are involved

We have now a lot of evidence on genetic components in many disorders including neurological in both adults and kids. Autism is one such problem that has many genes involved. Research is still in full swing to find more genes and related pathways. However, one can find autistic features more phenotypically before genotyping. Eye contact is one of them. Studies have shown that autistic kids make less eye contact. This has been shown to have genetic component now. New research has uncovered compelling evidence that genetics plays a major role in how children look at the world and whether they have a preference for gazing at people's eyes and faces or at objects. The discovery by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta adds new detail to understanding the causes of autism spectrum disorder. The results show that the moment-to-moment movements of children's eyes as they seek visual information about the

How much people depend on weather reports

Meteorologists on television, radio, online, and in newspapers supply weather reports to the average person over 100 times a month. Surveys demonstrated that the 300 billion forecasts accessed generate a value of $285 per household every year, or $32 billion for the entire United States. Odds are you have already watched one weather forecast today and will probably check out a few more. Accurate, timely forecasts are vital to everyday life, but just how critical may surprise you. Whether at work or play, you probably watch the weather quite closely. Most of us are at the weather person's mercy to know what to wear, what to expect, to prepare for the worst. New research shows the average United States household checks out a weather report more than three times a day. "It impacts pretty much every part of every activity we are involved with for the most part," Jeff Lazo, the director of the Societal Impacts Program at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in B