Association of Remote Monitoring With Survival in Heart Failure Patients Undergoing Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy: Retrospective Observational Study

• Published in: Journal of medical Internet research 2019-07, Vol.21 (7), p.e14142-e14142
• Main Authors: Bogyi, Peter, Vamos, Mate, Bari, Zsolt, Polgar, Balazs, Muk, Balazs, Nyolczas, Noemi, Kiss, Robert Gabor, Duray, Gabor Zoltan
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Atrial fibrillation; Cardiac patients; Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy - adverse effects; Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy - methods; Care and treatment; Defibrillators; Female; Heart failure; Heart Failure - mortality; Heart Failure - therapy; Humans; Male; Medical research; Medicine, Experimental; Middle Aged; Original Paper; Patient monitoring equipment; Patient outcomes; Retrospective Studies; Survival Rate; Telemedicine - methods; Treatment Outcome
• ISSN: 1438-8871; 1439-4456; 1438-8871
• DOI: 10.2196/14142

Remote monitoring is an established, guideline-recommended technology with unequivocal clinical benefits; however, its ability to improve survival is contradictory. The aim of our study was to investigate the effects of remote monitoring on mortality in an optimally treated heart failure patient population undergoing cardiac resynchronization defibrillator therapy (CRT-D) implantation in a large-volume tertiary referral center. The population of this single-center, retrospective, observational study included 231 consecutive patients receiving CRT-D devices in the Medical Centre of the Hungarian Defence Forces (Budapest, Hungary) from January 2011 to June 2016. Clinical outcomes were compared between patients on remote monitoring and conventional follow-up. The mean follow-up time was 28.4 (SD 18.1) months. Patients on remote monitoring were more likely to have atrial fibrillation, received heart failure management at our dedicated heart failure outpatient clinic more often, and have a slightly lower functional capacity. Crude all-cause mortality of remote-monitored patients was significantly lower compared with patients followed conventionally (hazard ratio [HR] 0.368, 95% CI 0.186-0.727, P=.004). The survival benefit remained statistically significant after adjustment for important baseline parameters (adjusted HR 0.361, 95% CI 0.181-0.722, P=.004). In this single-center, retrospective study of optimally treated heart failure patients undergoing CRT-D implantation, the use of remote monitoring systems was associated with a significantly better survival rate.