Tool will allow consumers to manage blood pressure and track other health
data online
DALLAS, Oct. 4 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The American Heart Association has launched Blood Pressure Management Center, an online health management tool that was built on HealthVault, Microsoft Corp.'s newly launched consumer health platform. Blood Pressure Management Center will allow consumers to track their health information online to help better manage their risk for heart disease and stroke, with an initial emphasis on managing high blood pressure. High blood pressure affects one in three Americans and is one of the major risk factors for both heart disease and stroke.
"The American Heart Association has long been a source of information for consumers and patients looking to prevent heart disease and stroke or manage an existing cardiovascular condition," said Dan Jones, M.D., president of the American Heart Association. "By building Blood Pressure Management Center on Microsoft HealthVault, our life-saving message will have an even broader reach, and consumers will have access to an online tool that can help them manage their health day-to-day and share this information with providers."
Blood Pressure Management Center offers consumers an easy, secure way to track important health data -- at no cost. Consumers can enter daily blood pressure readings and track the management of their condition over time. They can also enter the amount of physical activity they are doing, track their weight, enter updates on how they feel each day, review their readings through easy-to-read graphs and get additional health- related information via links to the American Heart Association Web site.
Consumers can print their personal reports and take this information to their physician or even log in and access the tool while at the physician's office. They can also allow a family member who is helping manage their care access to their online records. This Web-based platform makes it possible for people to manage their health from virtually any location and in one security- enhanced location. Blood Pressure Management Center can be accessed at http://www.healthvault.com or http://www.americanheart.org/BloodPressureManagementCenter.
"The American Heart Association and Microsoft are aligned on the strategy of equipping consumers with better information to guide healthcare decisions," said Peter Neupert, Corporate Vice President of the Health Solutions Group at Microsoft. "The Association's Blood Pressure Management Center provides the ability to collect, act on and share data related to heart health -- a critical tool to help improve healthcare for heart patients."
"Heart disease is the No. 1 killer in America and stroke is No. 3," said Jones. "The more we can educate people and offer them tools to proactively manage their health, the better chance we have of fighting these diseases. We see the Internet and tools like HealthVault as a very powerful way to do that, and we hope to expand beyond blood pressure and build many tools on this platform that Americans can use to improve their cardiovascular health."
About the American Heart Association
Founded in 1924, the American Heart Association today is the nation's oldest and largest voluntary health organization dedicated to reducing disability and death from cardiovascular diseases and stroke. These diseases, America's No. 1 and No. 3 killers, claim about 870,000 lives a year. In fiscal year 2005-06 the association invested over $543 million in research, professional and public education, advocacy and community service programs to help all Americans live longer, healthier lives. To learn more, call 1-800-AHA-USA1 or visit americanheart.org.
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SOURCE American Heart Association Copyright©2007 PR Newswire. All rights reserved |