OptiVol Fluid Accumulation Data Aiding Management Of Heart Failure Patients

Minneapolis - Medtronic, Inc., a leader in leveraging medical and information technologies to link implantable cardiac device patients with their physicians via the Internet, extended that capability through the addition of OptiVol Fluid Status Monitoring trend data available via the Medtronic CareLink Network.

"Heart failure is the number one cause of hospital admissions today - about 1 million annually - mostly as a result of fluid accumulation in the thorax, otherwise known as decompensation," said Bruce Wilkoff, MD, Director of Cardiac Pacing and Tachyarrhythmia Devices, Cleveland Clinic Foundation. "Fluid-overloaded patients can become critically ill, requiring hospitalization and often urgent care. By utilizing the OptiVol data together with regular patient monitoring, we can potentially prevent some of these hospitalizations or critical illness resulting from patients' worsening heart failure."

OptiVol Fluid Status Monitoring, which measures changes in impedance in the thoracic cavity, is a feature found on the InSync Sentry cardiac resynchronization therapy-defibrillator (CRT-D). Using very low electrical pulses that travel across the thoracic cavity (the chest area encompassing the lungs and heart), the system can measure the level of resistance to the electrical pulses, which indicates the level of fluid in the chest. Since normal fluid levels may vary from patient to patient and fluid accumulation can be either slow or rapid, OptiVol's ability to measure fluid status trends over time can provide important insights that are used in conjunction with ongoing monitoring of other patient symptoms.

The company recently received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval to provide this fluid trend data to physicians monitoring their patients via the Medtronic CareLink Network. It is expected that electrophysiologists (heart rhythm specialists) who implant devices such as InSync Sentry and conduct regular follow-up device checks, will share this fluid trend data with heart failure specialists, for true collaboration in the care of heart failure patients.

"Nearly 60,000 patients currently send data with the push of a button via the Medtronic CareLink Network, providing physicians with valuable information about their ICD, cardiac resynchronization therapy device, or pacemaker," said Steve Mahle, president, Medtronic Cardiac Rhythm Management. "Remote physician access to OptiVol trend data for patients is another tool to help combat worsening heart failure - leading to proactive care, rather than reacting to symptoms and hospitalizations."

Patients utilizing the Medtronic CareLink Network can transmit data from their implantable cardiac device using a portable monitor connected to a standard telephone line as instructed by their physician. Within minutes, the patient's physician can view the data on a secure Internet web site. The information, which is comparable to that provided during an in-clinic device follow-up visit, provides the physician with a view of how the device and patient's heart are operating. If needed, the physician can have the patient come to the clinic, make adjustments to the medications or prescribe additional therapy. OptiVol trend data are accessible in two formats, a detailed 90-day view, and a 14-month view, which shows longer-term trend data of the patient's condition.

SOURCE: Medtronic, Inc.