Telemedicine for Heart Failure: Evaluation of Treatment, Prognosis and Patient Experience

Heart failure (HF) is a condition that affects many people, especially those over 80 years old. It can cause significant healthcare costs and suffering. Traditional treatment involves frequent physical visits to specialized clinics to adjust medications. However, recent advances in technology have made telemonitoring possible, where health data is wirelessly transmitted from sensors. This study aims to evaluate if telemonitoring can provide effective, safe, and cost-efficient care with high patient satisfaction for HF patients. It's important because it could improve care, reduce hospitalizations, and enhance quality of life for HF patients. The study uses real-world data from the Swedish national HF register, SwedeHF, and electronic health records to optimize patient selection, equipment, and protocols, as recommended by the European Society of Cardiology's (ESC) guidelines for HF, 2021. Adult HF patients from specialized clinics are being recruited. They receive equipment to report vital signs and patient experience measures, automatically transmitted via smartphone for six months. A digital application is used for data registration and communication with healthcare providers. Medication adjustments may be done remotely. Abnormal values trigger notifications to healthcare providers, who offer services during office hours. Physical visits are planned as needed. A matched control population is obtained from the SwedeHF registry. Data is collected from medical records, questionnaires, and national registers. Outcomes include mortality, healthcare needs, patient experience, time to and dosages at optimal medical therapy. Health economic outcomes and management systems are also evaluated. Data analysis uses traditional regression models and machine learning techniques to identify predictive factors for death and rehospitalization.