Congestive Heart Failure (CHF), also called Chronic Heart Failure, is a chronic condition that affects the pumping power of the heart muscle. The heart pumps the blood ineffectively, causing it to return in veins and forcing liquids through capillary walls. The cumulative result is fluid buildup in body organs.
A patient with CHF is a person in pain. As his heart can’t keep up with his body’s blood needs, he always suffers from weakness, fatigue, short breath, and can’t exercise normally. Liquids buildup causes swelling in his legs, ankles, feet, abdomen, or all combined.
Medical sciences are accumulative. Each civilization contributes with a step forward to overcome the challenges facing humanity. Although ancient Egyptians first described CHF and Romans used foxglove to treat it, the European Society of Cardiology published the official guidelines for diagnosing CHF in 1995. And nowadays, the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) connected to telehealth systems are going a long way to face CHF challenges and provide advanced technology to diagnose it early.
Patients who use telehealth services have fewer hospitalizations and emergency room visits than those who do not. Telehealth also reduces costs by reducing the number of days spent in hospitals and nursing homes. IoT embedded sensors and wearable devices connected with telehealth solutions will have a positive impact on CHF patients in many ways, like:
1 – CHF Prediction
By using Remote Patient Monitoring, CHF can be predicted months before. The devices will collect all patient medical data (Ex: blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure, and activity level), combined with the patient’s medical history, and send them securely to cloud computing platforms. In those advanced platforms, deep learning, fog computing, and other cutting-edge technologies are used to assess the risk of CHF, giving enough time for the patient to adjust his medical situation and take the needed precautions.
2 – Lifestyle Monitoring
CHF is a progressive disease. The patient should follow a restricted medication plan to keep CHF under control and prevent complications. Telehealth solutions, like RPMAhealthcare, can help patients track their medication plans. Also, it can remind them to do exercises suitable to their medical condition. It’ll alert them when their stress level or other vital signs exceed the normal limits. Furthermore, telehealth solutions will facilitate their medical visits from booking to video conferencing.
3 – Awareness and Education
With telehealth solutions, like RPMAhealthcare, CHF patients can educate themselves about their medical condition and access resources that explain how to navigate the CHF challenges. Even non-diagnosed patients can still raise their awareness about CHF and learn how to minimize the risk of having heart failure.
CHF is a serious disease that puts your life at risk. It’s affecting at least 26 million people worldwide, and its prevalence is increasing. You can reduce your risk factors for developing CHF by giving up smoking and alcohol drinking, adopting a healthy lifestyle, and alerting its symptoms.
Visit www.rpmahealthcare.com to discover how telehealth can improve your current healthcare delivery methods.