No false readings with Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitor but specific hypertension diagnoses instead

Melville 11 September 2001TransMedEx, a provider of telemedicine monitoring and diagnostic services, has introduced an Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitor (ABPM) that can record blood pressure and heart rates for up to 48 hours, finally eliminating false, elevated readings associated with test anxiety, and providing clinicians with real time, diagnostic data taken while patients go about their daily routine.

Fifty million Americans have been diagnosed with hypertension, a potentially lethal elevation in blood pressure associated with the constriction of blood vessels. Of those, as many as 20 percent do not suffer from the disease, but present elevated blood pressure only when in the presence of a clinician. This is known as "white coat hypertension". By eliminating false readings, physicians will be able to reduce unnecessary treatments and costs.

More importantly, extended testing by ABPMs will help physicians identify and treat nocturnal, borderline, and episodic hypertension, which by their very nature are unlikely to show up in traditional, clinic screening. Fast, accurate identification of these specific types of hypertension will improve care and provide a valuable guide for drug interventions.

"We are delighted to be able to offer our physicians and their patients this valuable diagnostic tool", stated Yvonne F. Manfra, R.N., B.S.N., CCRN, Clinical Nurse Supervisor at TransMedEx's Cardiac Monitoring Lab. "Our monitors can record a patient's systolic, diastolic, and mean blood pressure and heart rate at predetermined times, as directed by their physician. The patient can then transmit that data to us via a standard telephone line, insuring fast, accurate, real life data on which the doctor can make his diagnosis."

TransMedEx's ABPM uses oscillometry with a standard arm cuff, the most widely accepted method of automatic non-invasive blood pressure measurement. The pager-sized monitor is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and because it does not use electrodes, patients find it comfortable and non-intrusive, often wearing it for the full 48 hours.

Test data is stored on a digitised card, which the monitor can transmit over a standard telephone line for immediate analysis. Transtelephonic data delivery means there is no geographic limit to the monitor's viability. In non-emergency situations, prescribing physicians receive test results within two hours.

TransMedEx is known for its outstanding service commitment to patients and prescribing physicians. It specialises in state-of-the-art transtelephonic testing devices that provide enhanced diagnostic analysis and fast data delivery using standard telephone lines.

TransMedEx's product line includes the first Angina Monitor; a 12-lead, Web-enabled Holter monitoring system; a long-term Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitor; transtelephonic cardiac event monitoring devices, including Telemetry @ Home, an automatic triggering and transmission cardiac event monitor; and mobile ultrasound services. More company news is available in the VMW August 2001 article TransMedEx to deliver state-of-the-art in digital ambulatory electro-cardiography.

Leslie Versweyveld

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