New Service Helps Women at Risk of Sudden Cardiac Death

Sudden cardiac death is responsible for one-third of coronary artery disease deaths in women, and the reason why women with heart disease and recurrent heart arrhythmias are prime candidates for implanted cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs). In addition, pacemakers are implanted in nearly 100,000 women each year to treat symptomatic bradycardia (abnormally slow heart rate), according to Raytel Cardiac Services, headquartered in Hartford, Connecticut.

However, as the number of ICD and pacemaker recipients grows, so does the need for new ways to monitor and assess these devices on a regular basis, a key factor in assuring the sustained effectiveness of the devices. Now, new "telemedicine" technology is available for ICD and pacemaker patients to remotely monitor these devices from the comfort and convenience of home or anywhere there is a telephone line.

"Remote monitoring of ICDs is an excellent service for patients," says Lawrence Gessman, M.D., cardiologist and electrophysiologist at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, New Jersey, and a member of the Raytel Medical Advisory Board.

"Telephone follow-up is an accepted practice in pacemaker care, and a study by the Cleveland Clinic (Journal of Interventional Cardiac Electrophysiology, November 2004) demonstrates that there are significant benefits for the ICD population as well. If the patient is shocked at home, the information is downloaded and transmitted to the physician after the shock episode so an immediate assessment can be made, preventing unnecessary visits to the emergency room."

Gessman adds, "The findings of the 'Sudden Cardiac Death in Heart Failure Trial' (SCD-HeFT) study (New England Journal of Medicine, January 20, 2005), demonstrates that ICDs save lives among people at risk for sudden cardiac death, and as a result, remote monitoring with a service like Raytel's is likely to be the only way doctors will be able to manage the ongoing follow-up of all these new patients in a timely and comprehensive manner." Presently, there are only 3,700 specialists in cardiac pacing and electrophysiology in 64 countries, according to the Heart Rhythm Society.

Raytel Cardiac Services, a leader in the field of remote monitoring of pacemakers for more than three decades, now offers doctors and patients the most efficient, reliable solution for managing the routine and emergency follow-up of the rapidly growing numbers of these ICD devices. The benefits of remote monitoring of ICDs and pacemakers for patients, include:

• Patients test from home and don't have to travel long distances for follow-up care.
  
• nnecessary visits to the doctor and emergency room after a shocking episode are avoided with remote follow up.
  
• Patients who experience a shock or any symptoms can call the Raytel ICD center 24/7, 365 days per year, with confidence that someone will be at the other end of the phone.