A systematic review of the literature on home monitoring for patients with heart failure

We conducted a systematic review of the literature for assessing the value of home monitoring for heart failure (HF) patients. The abstracts of 383 articles were read. We excluded those in which either no home monitoring was done or only the technical aspects of the telemedicine application were des...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of telemedicine and telecare 2006-07, Vol.12 (5), p.234-241
Main Authors: Martínez, Andrés, Everss, Estrella, Rojo-Alvarez, José Luis, Figal, Domingo Pascual, García-Alberola, Arcadio
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Feasibility Studies
Heart Failure - therapy
Home Care Services - statistics & numerical data
Humans
Middle Aged
Patient Readmission - economics
Patient Readmission - statistics & numerical data
Quality of Life - psychology
Systematic review
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:We conducted a systematic review of the literature for assessing the value of home monitoring for heart failure (HF) patients. The abstracts of 383 articles were read. We excluded those in which either no home monitoring was done or only the technical aspects of the telemedicine application were described. Forty-two studies met the selection criteria. We classified the results into feasibility (technical and institutional) and impact (on the clinical process, on patient health, on accessibility and acceptability of the health system, and on the economy). Evaluating the articles showed that home monitoring in HF patients is viable, given that: (1) it appears to be technically effective for following the patient remotely; (2) it appears to be easy to use, and it is widely accepted by patients and health professionals; and (3) it appears to be economically viable. Furthermore, home monitoring of HF patients has been shown to have a positive impact on: (1) the clinical process, supported by a significant improvement of patient follow-up by adjustment of treatment, diet or behaviour, as well as hospital readmissions and emergency visits reduction; (2) the patient's health, supported by a relevant improvement in quality of life, a reduction of days in hospital, and a decrease in mortality; and (3) costs resulting from the use of health resources.
ISSN:1357-633X
1758-1109
DOI:10.1258/135763306777889109