Cardiomobile: A feasibility study of remote cardiac rehabilitation

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Dr Charles Worringham is leading a research team, using GPS and newly developed monitoring software, to evaluate the use of the Alive Heart Monitor from Alive Technologies as a tool to help the roughly 80% of patients who are recommended for out-patient (Phase 2) cardiac rehabiliation but who never undertake it.

Appropriately supervised exercise is an important component of cardiac rehabilitation. Yet a host of factors including family and work commitments, transport, access and other hurdles, prevent many people from starting or completing the exercise component of hospital-based rehabilitation programs.

This trial is assessing a flexible alternative in which patients undertake supervised walking while their speed, location, heart rate and ECG are monitored over the web by an exercise phsiologist (See example).

The Study

Participants who have declined hospital-based rehabilitation are randomised into a 'normal care' group and a 'remotely monitored exercise' group.  The social, psychological and functional status of each group after discharge and six weeks later is compared. The study is assessing the usability and reliability of the remote monitoring equipment.  The major referral site is Greenslopes Private Hospital, but a number of other hospital and GP groups around Australia are also involved.  If you are involved in cardiac rehabilitation and are interested in being a test site, please contact us.

The research includes:

• Further developing and testing the user interface
• Assessing the use of additional signals
• Testing the usability in field settings and the laboratory
• Developing sortware to detect aspects of locomotion and posture and report useful summary data.

This research is funded by the Australian Research Council and Alive Technologies through a Linkage Grant.

Other aspects of the collaboration include:

• Applications in occupational health and safety
• A PhD project on speed regulation of humans running in hilly terrain

Please contact us if you have any questions regarding the study.