Near Field Communication-based telemonitoring with integrated ECG recordings

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Cardiology
• Digital Health

Background:

• Telemonitoring of vital signs is crucial for managing chronic heart failure (CHF).
• Atrial fibrillation (AF) is common in CHF patients, necessitating its early detection.
• Current telemonitoring systems need enhancement for autonomous electrocardiogram (ECG) acquisition.

Purpose of the Study:

• To extend an existing mobile phone-based telemonitoring system with Near Field Communication (NFC) technology.
• To enable patients with CHF to autonomously acquire their ECG signals easily.
• To assess the technical feasibility, usability, and adherence of the enhanced telemonitoring system.

Main Methods:

• A prototype sensing device was developed for simultaneous blood pressure and ECG acquisition.
• The device integrated NFC and Bluetooth for seamless interaction with a mobile patient terminal.
• A clinical pilot trial evaluated the system's feasibility, usability, and adherence to twice-daily usage.

Main Results:

• 21 CHF patients participated, transmitting 211 ECG datasets over 140 cumulative days (82.2% adherence).
• The system facilitated autonomous ECG acquisition with high patient adherence and usability.
• 55% of ECG signals were adequate for ventricular rhythm assessment, while 8% sufficed for atrial rhythm assessment.

Conclusions:

• The developed telemonitoring system, combining Bluetooth and NFC, enables ambulatory ECG acquisition in CHF patients.
• High adherence rates and system usability were achieved.
• ECG signal quality needs enhancement for improved AF detection in telemonitoring programs.