Continuous monitoring of blood pressure typically requires an arterial catheter or other complex equipment--which means it's typically confined to critical care settings. But now, the FDA has cleared a low-pressure finger cuff that continuously monitors blood pressure beat-by-beat at an accuracy that exceeds the agency's requirement, according to its maker, Charlottesville, VA-based CareTaker Medical. It uses Pulse Decomposition Analysis technology to noninvasively measure blood pressure; it also measures heart rate as accurately as a 3-lead ECG. The finger cuff connects to a wrist-worn device; data can be viewed online or via an app. It can also be integrated into patient medical records. "CareTaker is a real game changer, allowing physicians to remotely monitor medical-grade Continuous Blood Pressure and Heart Rate from anywhere, using only a patient friendly-finger cuff," said Dr. Jay Sanders, adjunct professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and president emeritus of the American Telemedicine Association. "Until now, most clinicians have had to settle for intermittent 'point-in-time' Blood Pressure measurements using bulky arm cuffs, which can produce misleading results due to the influence of many factors such as movement, posture, anxiety, or caffeine. In remote monitoring settings, the ability to gather continuous blood pressure and vital sign data from such an integrated easy-to-use device will provide better information and improve patient compliance while reducing cost and workload." More
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