There is a new monitoring device for patients with heart failure that allows doctors to keep a close eye on the progress of heart failure treatment. Dr. Howard Haronian is Chief Medical Director and East Region Vice President for the Hartford HealthCare Heart & Vascular Institute.
Q: Tell us about the Heart Failure Program at Hartford HealthCare’s Heart & Vascular Institute.
A: The Hartford HealthCare Heart & Vascular Institute has an advanced Heart Failure Program based at Hartford Hospital. But with exciting new technology and our partner hospitals, we’ve been able to distribute that expertise throughout our institute, throughout the state. In fact, through two states: Connecticut and Rhode Island.
Q: What is pulmonary artery pressure monitoring, and how does that relate to the heart failure monitoring of patients?
A: Pulmonary artery pressure monitoring is a technique where we can measure fluid buildup in the lungs of heart failure patients. It’s one of the first signs we have that a heart failure patient is fluid overloaded. It occurs before symptoms, before weight gain, before swelling. So it’s something that’s very important to monitor if possible. Usually we can only do it in an inpatient setting. But with this technology, we can do it from a patient’s home.
Learn more about this and other treatments for heart failure here.