Physicians click on smartphone for ECG scan

BANGALORE: What happens when you are not able to go to hospital for ECG scan? Then, the ECG can come to you. And the physician will conduct the scan with a click on his/her smartphone.
Call it using social media to deliver cardiac care. That's what over 50 physicians learnt on Monday in a conference at Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Medical Sciences.
A group of 20 well-known physicians and senior cardiac sonographers from the American Society of Echocardiography Foundation (ASEF), the world's leading specialty organisation dedicated to the use of echocardiography (ultrasound-based heart scan), took part in the conference to equip medicos with recent technology using smartphones.
The team discussed rheumatic heart disease that is very common in India but rare in the West, and transfer of technology that will help doctors here.
The conference aims at developing an international scientific database that will be used to modify the current treatment pattern for patients with rheumatic heart disease.
"It's about taking hospital to a patient and carrying a doctor in pocket in the form of a smartphone. These days, everyone has a smartphone and it can be used in diagnosis. For example, a smartphone android application called i-scan works like a single lead ECG, which physicians can use in cases suspected. Physicians can in turn get in touch with specialists. All this makes it easier for us to deliver quality cardiac care in remote parts of the country," said Dr Srikanth Sola, senior consultant - cardiology, at Sai hospital.
The programme will assess the utility of smartphone-based technologies and hand-held ultrasound in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with complex valvular heart disease, he added.
ASEF members demonstrated some of the latest technologies in the arena of cardiac care such as use of a smartphone to run a heart scan and diagnose conditions such as rheumatic heart disease. They also have many applications using the social media to deliver cardiac care.
During the conference in the next two days, the team of doctors from the US will be assessing a full spectrum of abnormalities seen in rheumatic valvular heart disease using state-of-the-art technology developed by them. The hospital aims to screen totally 300 patients in three days (August 11-13).
"For needy patients who cannot afford high-cost treatment, this collaboration is a boon. Doctors here will acquire the technology and knowledge to diagnose complex heart diseases using just a smartphone and hand-held device," said Dr Sola.
Apart from the mobile applications, the physicians also were trained in using V-scan, a handy machine, developed by GE Healthcare that works like an echo machine. "Rheumatic heart disease is not a lifestyle disorder. Cases of viral fever and joint pain if not treated can turn out to cause rheumatic heart disease among children, where the heart valve deteriorates resulting with malfunction of the heart. It's the physicians who can diagnose it in initial stages and V-scan helps in diagnosis," said Ganesh Prasad, director Ultrasound Business GE Healthcare South Asia.