How Advances in Wearable Cardiac Devices Improve the Clinician and Patient Experience

Technological advancements in the wearable cardiac devices are helping to improve both the effectiveness of clinicians and experience of the patient to gather data and monitor ECG-based cardiac activity. While the traditional methods of cardiac monitoring resulted in delayed access to patient data and low patient compliance, new cardiac monitoring technology provide clinicians with immediate access & analysis of patient data and is also less cumbersome to patients.

Challenges of Previous Technologies

Holter devices or monitors have been used for many years as the standard option for cardiac monitoring. However, numerous patients have found the bulky devices or monitors disruptive to their routines, and the adhesive electrodes to be irritating and cumbersome. Earlier, patients had to walk around with a box on their hip which restricted them from taking shower and all the things that are carried out for a normal two- to three-day period.

Typically, Holter monitors were used to track 24 to 48 hours of cardiac activity and the patients were asked to keep a record in a diary of their symptoms. This process was often problematic in collecting precise and helpful information for clinicians.

The patients were needed to write down the exact time that they were experiencing symptoms, and there were times when patients used to forget to track their record, so the doctors had no idea when they were symptomatic.

Moving Beyond Holter Monitors

The second & next generation of wearable cardiac devices or monitors could be worn for 7 to 14 days. After the completion of monitoring period, clinicians had to mail the device to the third-party service company or a manufacturer to analyze and formulate a report of the ECG rhythm activity of the patient. This long process prevented clinicians from retrieving and analyzing information immediately and also meant that the service company netted the majority of the billable procedural value.

The problem with these process was that sometimes there would be no report, and then the clinicians have to get on the telephone and talk to the service. This was all very inefficient and every so often not comparable with any level of patient satisfaction.

Improving the Clinical and Patient Experience

The latest wearable cardiac devices available today provide a complete, comprehensive, and patient-friendly arrhythmia and analysis system for clinic-based or in-office healthcare.

The newest wearable cardiac devices are small, disposables, water-resistant, lightweight, and can be worn for up to 7 days. This extended time period agrees for efficient diagnosis of various irregular heart rhythms, which includes atrial fibrillation (AF) - the most common form.

Novel, less invasive, wearable cardiac devices that offer this type of long-term data beyond 48 hours include iRhythm Zio, Cardiac Insight Cardea Solo, Biotricity Bioflux, ScottCare novi Patch Holter, Medicalgorithmics PocketECG, BardyDx CAM Ambulatory ECG Monitor Patch, and others.

The Cardiac Insight’s software uses an interactive full-disclosure and robust set of ECG algorithms trace review tools in order to review every heartbeat if necessary. This enables frontline clinicians to implement all three components of the patient diagnostic process that includes application, data analysis, and interpretation and professional review, without any need to outsource PHI (protected health information) and without any delay.

This latest technology in wearable cardiac devices eliminates the need for multiple clinical hand-offs, it provides greater operational efficacy and potential savings for insurers as well as patients. Today’s latest wearable cardiac devices saves time of clinicians and helps patient to record any symptoms without any trouble.

COVID-19 Impact and Forecast Analysis of Wearable Cardiac Devices Market

According to the report published by Research Dive, the COVID-19 pandemic has positively impacted the global wearable cardiac devices market. This is mainly because of the growing need for wearable cardiac devices for COVID-19 patients coupled with the increasing cases of coronavirus across the globe. In addition, various organizations across the globe are taking initiatives to figure out cardiovascular disease population in the pandemic crisis, which is expected to drive the global market growth.

Moreover, the global market is estimated to sustain its positive growth even after the pandemic owing to the growing geriatric population and rising incidence of cardiovascular diseases among them. For instance, as per the American Heart Association (AHA) statistics, about 77.2% male and 78.2% females aged 60 to 79 years are suffering from cardiovascular diseases. Furthermore, the increasing demand for remote patient monitoring & home healthcare devices is projected to propel the market growth post COVID-19 pandemic.

About the Author(s)

Princy A. J

Princy holds a bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from the prestigious Tamil Nadu Dr. M.G.R. University at Chennai, India. After a successful academic record, she pursued her passion for writing. A thorough professional and enthusiastic writer, she enjoys writing on various categories and advancements in the global industries. She plays an instrumental role in writing about current updates, news, blogs, and trends.