Title: Design of wearable cardiac telemedicine system

Authors: V. Thulasi Bai, S.K. Srivatsa

Addresses: Sathyabama University, FF1, Hansa Garden, Madambakkam Main Road, Chennai 600 073, Tamil Nadu, India. ' Sathyabama University, FF1, Hansa Garden, Madambakkam Main Road, Chennai 600 073, Tamil Nadu, India

Abstract: Cardiovascular disease is the world|s leading killer disease, accounting for 16.7 million deaths annually. About 22 million people all over the world run the risk of sudden heart failure. However, deaths from cardiovascular diseases have decreased substantially over the past two decades, largely as a result of advances in acute care and cardiac surgery. These developments have resulted in a growing population of patients who have survived myocardial infarction. These patients need to be continuously monitored so that the initiation of treatment can be taken up within the crucial golden hour. The available conventional methods of monitoring restrict the mobility of these patients within a hospital or room. The primary aim of this paper is to design a Wearable Cardiac Telemedicine System that can help the mobility of patients, so as to regain their independence and return to an active social or work schedule, thereby improving their psychological well-being. The whole system has been implemented and tested. The results obtained are encouraging.

Keywords: electrocardiograms; ECG; bluetooth; mobile cellular networks; telemedicine; wireless communications; electronic healthcare; patient monitoring; alerting systems; patient mobility; e-health; cardiovascular disease; heart failure; heart attacks; wearable computers; cardiac arrest.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEH.2007.014550

International Journal of Electronic Healthcare, 2007 Vol.3 No.3, pp.303 - 316

Published online: 16 Jul 2007 *

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