The benefits of remote blood pressure monitoring have become increasingly apparent in cardiac care, as scientific research has revealed numerous advantages of using remote patient monitoring (RPM) to manage various heart-related conditions. Remote blood pressure monitoring involves patients using FDA-cleared remote patient monitoring medical devices. These devices measure and transmit patients’ daily vital signs to their healthcare providers. RPM technology allows clinicians to closely monitor patient’s physiological data and make timely adjustments to treatment plans between in-person visits.
This article covers 10 evidence-based benefits of remote blood pressure monitoring in cardiac care. Some of the key evidence-based benefits of remote blood pressure monitoring in cardiac care include:
- Aids in hypertensive urgency
- Remotely monitors atrial fibrillation events
- Decrease in systolic and diastolic blood pressure over time
- Promotes lifestyle adjustments
- Reduces hospital visits
- Allows prompt adjustment to treatment plans
- Encourages patient treatment adherence
- Alters patient lifestyle choices
- Improves quality of life
- Detects unstable changes in heart failure patients
RPM & Benefits of Remote Blood Pressure Monitoring
Remote patient monitoring allows qualified healthcare professionals to monitor their patient’s vital signs between in-person visits. This approach involves equipping patients with FDA-cleared medical devices, such as a remote blood pressure monitor, to track and transmit their physiological data regularly.
For example, a hypertensive patient would use an RPM device to take measurements from home, automatically uploading the data to their clinician’s monitoring platform. The clinical team can then access this data through a dashboard and promptly adjust the patient’s medication or treatment plan as needed. Alerts can also notify the provider and patient if a reading exceeds a predetermined threshold.
By closely monitoring patients’ physiological data remotely, clinicians can identify and address potential complications early before progressing to more severe or debilitating stages. This proactive approach is supported by research showing that many people often delay seeking medical attention until their symptoms become quite severe.
The following sections outline 10 evidence-based benefits of using remote blood pressure monitoring in cardiac care:
1. Benefits of Remote Blood Pressure Monitoring — Hypertensive Urgency
One benefit of remote blood pressure monitoring is that it aids in detecting hypertensive urgency. Hypertension is a chronic condition and the number one risk for death globally, affecting nearly 1.13 billion people. In the United States, 48%, or almost 116 million people, have hypertension. Furthermore, it is a significant risk factor for many chronic diseases, including:
- Heart attack
- Heart failure
- Kidney disease
- Stroke
- Vision loss
Hypertension occurs when blood pressure is 180/120 mm Hg or greater, and there are no signs of organ damage. An urgent hypertensive crisis is a sudden, severe increase in blood pressure. Hypertensive urgency typically develops gradually and is often preventable by adopting a healthier diet, being physically active, and limiting alcohol consumption. However, it can sometimes be difficult for patients to commit to lifestyle changes, especially in between office visits. When patients take daily recordings, they can see how lifestyle adjustments affect their measurements.
2. Remote Blood Pressure Monitors Atrial Fibrillation Events
Atrial fibrillation is associated with adverse outcomes such as stroke, heart failure, increased hospitalizations, and mortality. Therefore, early arrhythmia diagnosis is vital to adopt an appropriate treatment strategy. Clinical guidelines strongly recommend remote patient monitoring for Atrial Fibrillation detection in stroke and non-stroke patients. Furthermore, in non-randomized trials, remote blood pressure monitoring has shown the potential to improve outcomes by enabling accurate and early detection and decreasing all-cause mortality rates and hospitalizations.
3. Decrease in Systolic and diastolic Blood Pressure
Research shows that remote blood pressure monitoring can significantly reduce systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) compared to traditional care and self-monitoring alone. Additionally, a meta-analysis showed that digital health interventions and counseling optimized blood pressure management, reducing systolic blood pressure by 50 percent compared to control groups.
Further, a meta-study published in NPJ Digital Medicine reported that tailored RPM interventions based on care pathways effectively reduced blood pressure for select groups of patients. Additional studies report that RPM’s positive impact on SBP can increase if the long-term intervention includes multiple behavior change techniques.
4. Promotes Lifestyle Adjustments
Another benefit of remote blood pressure monitoring is that by focusing on early identification, treatment, and lifestyle choices, remote patient monitoring can help prevent the development of chronic diseases. In addition, monitoring heart rate can help provide insights into overall heart health. Moreover, regularly monitoring heart rate helps detect diseases such as arrhythmia, hypotension, hypertension, and hyperthermia early.
A heart rate monitor can help patients become more aware of their current state. For example, if their heart rate rises, patients can ask themselves questions such as: What was my caffeine and water intake today? Did I exercise? Am I stressed? Patients can share these answers with their physicians, make lifestyle changes, set priorities, and move toward healthier choices.
5. Reduces Hospital Visits
Hospital utilization, such as emergency department (ED) and inpatient for nonacute symptom management, is likely more prevalent in underserved populations. The fifth benefit of remote blood pressure monitoring is that it increases equitability and accessibility of preventive care to 89% of U.S. adults and 78% of adults globally who own a smartphone. In addition, the increase in access to telehealth and RPM services allows clinicians to monitor hypertensive patients between office appointments.
A systematic review reported that telemonitoring reduces heart failure rehospitalization and mortality. In addition, a single-center study of heart failure patients using RPM connected devices allowed clinicians to make appropriate medication changes in response to alerts, which showed significant reductions in the likelihood of experiencing a cardiac-related ED visit.
6. Allows Prompt Adjustment to Treatment Plans
A single blood pressure measurement tells a physician what an individual’s blood pressure is. However, factors such as stress or forgetting to take medications before an office visit can influence that measurement, giving the clinician an inaccurate representation of the patient’s overall health. With remote blood pressure monitoring, patients can measure their blood pressure regularly from their homes.
Frequent readings give physicians a more precise representation of the patient’s blood pressure levels over time and help ensure effective treatments. In addition, medical teams can quickly react to minor and concerning changes in the patient’s daily physiological data. Specifically for patients with heart disease, remote patient monitoring enables a physician to identify and preempt potentially dangerous and costly emergencies.
7. Encourages Patient Treatment Adherence
Remote blood pressure monitoring helps patients feel more involved in managing their health and encourages active engagement. A recent study found that remote blood pressure monitoring can enhance self-management capabilities and overall quality of life for individuals with hypertension. It reduces treatment and care expenses but also proves particularly beneficial for patients who can’t make regular doctor visits and those with poor treatment adherence. With RPM, qualified healthcare professionals can effectively support and engage with these patients.
Tenovi devices increase the number of patients eligible for Medicare CPT 99454 reimbursement by 27% compared to leading cellular RPM devices. This is because devices are already paired and connected to a cellular health hub. Each morning, a red appears on the Tenovi Cellular Gateway health hub, reminding the patient that it’s time for the patient to take a measurement. The LED ring turns green once a measurement is sent to the cloud.
8. Alters Patient Lifestyle Choices
The RPM portal stores each blood pressure reading a patient takes. Data begins accumulating fast, and a patient’s health history soon develops. The data provides physicians valuable insights for treating the patient and allows the patient to see how lifestyle adjustments affect their blood pressure. Remote blood pressure monitoring engages the patient in managing their health.
A large healthcare center in Brooklyn, New York, implemented a technology-based care model to improve the management of hypertension. The team also arranges remote blood pressure monitoring for continuous care. Additionally, they offer health coaching to help patients adhere to their medications and make lifestyle changes.
With easy-to-use remote medical devices, patients don’t have to worry about recording the information. Instead, patients are accountable for taking measurements regularly. Because the patients know their care provider will regularly monitor their health, they’re more likely to adhere to their treatment plans and adopt healthier behaviors. In addition, when RPM devices are user-friendly, work right out of the box, and ship directly to the patient, it benefits senior patients.
9. Improves Quality of Life
Remote blood pressure monitoring benefits both patients and healthcare providers. By promoting value-based care, remote patient monitoring expands healthcare beyond the clinical setting and into the patient’s everyday life. To impact patients’ quality of life, remote patient monitoring solutions must focus on outcomes that matter to patients.
A study leveraging 5 survey measures was conducted to evaluate the quality of life improvement in after-care stroke patients using remote blood pressure monitoring. The study supported the idea of self-management in healthcare through interactive digital health. With access to the right tools and resources, patients can actively participate in post-stroke care to help reduce disparities in health outcomes.
Improved quality of life includes decreasing symptom severity, satisfaction with care, resource utilization, fewer hospitalizations and readmissions, and survival. However, as previously noted, one systematic review of patients with heart failure showed that all-cause and heart failure mortality were the most frequently reported outcomes associated with RPM. Still, others said there is an improved quality of life for those at high risk for deterioration.
10. Detects Unstable Changes in Heart Failure Patients
Remote cardiac monitoring is a promising approach to treating heart failure patients and monitoring physiologic parameters to detect unstable changes before deterioration occurs. Recent systematic reviews and meta-analyses have shown that remote patient monitoring positively affects heart failure-related admissions, mortality rates, and all-cause mortality rates.
In addition to blood pressure monitoring, daily remote weight monitoring is frequently cited as beneficial to effective chronic heart failure management. That is because a sudden gain in weight of 2 to 3 pounds in 24 hours may be an indication of heart failure. Remote patient monitoring studies dating back to 2011 have suggested that RPM patients are less likely to have readings fall outside a normal range. Daily weight monitoring allows patients to stay on top of managing congestive heart failure and work on preventative care rather than treatment.
Benefits of Remote Blood Pressure Monitoring — The Future
What can be expected in the future benefits of remote blood pressure monitoring? Artificial intelligence methods are being explored to predict and identify, predict triggers and prevent cardiac adverse health events. RPM already allows a patient to take steps toward preventing stroke. They receive an alert when a reading exceeds a provider’s preset threshold. Physicians can contact the patient and remind them to take another reading. Patients can see how lifestyle and behavioral changes affect their vital sign readings and work toward changes that might forestall adverse events.
Tenovi offers an accurate, easy-to-use blood pressure monitor (BPM) solution and RPM services that boost workflow efficiency and patient satisfaction and generate revenue. You can schedule a free demo and get ready to meet a better RPM experience with Tenovi.
