title: The use of the Internet to remotely monitor patients with heart failure.
abstract: Heart failure (HF) results in high hospitalization rates and healthcare costs. Telemonitoring of HF has been shown to result in improved outcomes but usually involves the use of expensive equipment. A more feasible alternative may be the use of a Web site. The purpose of this study is to investigate the use of a Web site designed for HF telemonitoring. Patients newly referred to a heart function clinic were screened for eligibility. Twenty participants were recruited and entered their weight and symptoms onto the Web site for 6 months. A nurse monitored the Web site for changes in participant health status and telephoned the participants as necessary. Self-care, quality of life, 6-minute walk test, and N-terminal prohormone brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) were assessed. Interviews were conducted to assess intervention uptake. Seventeen participants completed the study. A significant change was observed on the maintenance subscale of the Self-Care of Heart Failure Index (p = 0.039). There was a trend toward improvement on the confidence subscale of the Self-Care of Heart Failure Index (p = 0.069), Minnesota Living With Heart Failure((R)) Questionnaire (p = 0.337), 6-minute walk test (p = 0.124), and NT-proBNP (p = 0.210). Participants and nurses demonstrated a favorable uptake of the Web site. A Web site that facilitates the telemonitoring of patients with HF was favorably accepted and its use in this pilot study was associated with improved self-care skills. However, further investigation is warranted in a larger study population.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Physiology and Kinesiology, Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
authors.forename: Biljana
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Maric
authors.forename: Annemarie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kaan
authors.forename: Yuriko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Araki
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ignaszewski
authors.forename: Scott A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Lear
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005080:Exercise Test; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020097:Natriuretic Peptide, Brain / Q000097:blood; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000097:blood; D011788:Quality of Life; D012648:Self Care / Q000379:methods; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D017216:Telemedicine / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D010446:Peptide Fragments; C109794:pro-brain natriuretic peptide (1-76); D020097:Natriuretic Peptide, Brain