ABINGTON, PA– Abington Hospital – Jefferson Health is the first facility in Eastern Montgomery County to implant a new miniaturized, wireless monitoring sensor to manage heart failure. The CardioMEMS™ HF System is the first and only FDA-approved heart failure monitoring device that has been proven to significantly reduce hospital admissions when used by physicians to manage heart failure.
“We are excited to offer this innovative technology and its ability to treat and improve outcomes for those living with heart failure,” said Robert A. Watson III, MD, chief, Cardiology and co-director, Comprehensive Heart Failure Program, Abington Hospital. “Advances in diagnostics and treatment are key to our Comprehensive Heart Failure Program, which provides a multidisciplinary approach to care that includes cardiologists, cardiology nurse practitioners, and other professionals—all specialty trained in heart failure.”
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 5 million Americans have heart failure and 1 million people are admitted to hospitals annually for this condition. Heart failure occurs when the heart is unable to pump enough blood to meet the body’s demands. Patients with heart failure are frequently hospitalized, have a reduced quality of life and face a higher risk of death.
For patients who are appropriate candidates, the CardioMEMS system features a sensor (about the size of a paper clip), which a cardiac specialist implants in the pulmonary artery during a nonsurgical procedure. The implant is permanent and does not require leads or batteries. It measures pressures inside the heart, which is important in the management of heart failure because pulmonary artery pressures change weeks before a patients begin to experience signs or symptoms their condition is deteriorating. Until now, patients had to be hospitalized for constant monitoring of pulmonary artery pressures. Otherwise, they could only detect worsening heart failure only by monitoring daily signs such as changes in their weight or blood pressure.
By detecting changes in pulmonary artery prior to the onset of symptoms, clinicians can adjust treatment to reduce the likelihood of hospitalization. In fact, data from a clinical trial showed the CardioMEMS technology reduces heart failure hospital admissions by up to 37 percent. Simply by lying on a special pillow and pressing a button, patients can take daily sensor readings at home, and transmit the data to their health care providers via a secure, online portal.
Visit Jefferson.edu/AbingtonHeart or call 215-481-HEART for more information or to schedule a visit with a cardiologist at Abington Hospital.
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