Examination of the Effective Utilization of the CARELINK® Remote Monitoring System after its Introduction

• Main Authors: Satoshi Miyamoto, Yukiko Nakano, MD, Shigeyuki Okahara, Hidenobu Takahashi, Hisayasu Matsuzaki, Noboru Oda, MD, Katsuhiko Imai, MD, Taijirou Sueda, MD, Yasuki Kihara, MD
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2011-01-01
• Series: Journal of Arrhythmia
• Subjects: Implantable Devices; Remote Monitoring; Checklist
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1880427611800207

Background: Japan started using the CARELINK® (Medtronic, Inc, Minneapolis, MN, USA) remote monitoring system in April 2009. However, in some cases, the device failed to transmit a message after registration or according to schedule. We investigated the difference between patients who could make effective use of CARELINK® system and those who could not. Subjects and Method: Sixty patients who had registered until December 2009 at our institution were analyzed. These patients were divided into two groups: those who were able to use the device effectively (group G, n = 49) and those who were not (group F = 11). Patient background, automatic or manual telemetries, new or existing implant patient, presence of adverse events, and the use or non-use of a checklist at the time of introduction were compared between the two groups. Results: In group G, more patients used a checklist at the time of introduction than that in group F (use of checklist/total, 31/49 in group G vs. 3/11 in group F; P, 0.029). No significant difference was observed in other factors between the two groups. Conclusion: We consider that the method used to explain the system are important to make the patients understand handling methods of CARELINK® system. The number of patients introduced to remote monitoring of implantable devices will continue to increase in the future; therefore, we must continue to develop innovative approaches for their effective us.