Remote Heart-Monitoring Platform Begins ...(er microcontroller and wireless modules ...),Health

"Combining the worldwide recognized clinical expertise of Mayo Clinic with our ability to provide highly integrated volume solutions at affordable costs, we are convinced we will open new frontiers to bring quality healthcare to everybody," said Alessandro Cremonesi, Vice President, Advanced System Technology, STMicroelectronics. "ST is utilizing its strong expertise to develop advanced technologies and products satisfying the requirements of telemedicine platforms. This will allow medical device manufacturers and health-care providers to develop new products and services to enhance the quality of medical support for their customers and patients."

Telemedicine is expected to play an increasingly important role in helping solve the growing costs of healthcare monitoring and delivery, especially in the context of an aging population. For example, in the USA, which spent over $2 trillion on healthcare in 2007 - nearly twice the average per-capita spending of other developed countries - the Congressional Budget Office estimates that, with current trends, by 2025 some 25% of the national economy will be tied up in healthcare.(1)

In addition to better service to the patient, the potential benefits of remote monitoring may include:

• lower costs due to reduced physician visits for routine check-ups;
• earlier diagnosis of impending health problems, leading to earlier intervention, in turn reducing hospitalization, costs and enhancing the probability of successful recovery from illness;
• lower environmental burden due to reduced necessity for travel;
• acquisition of comprehensive and integrated data for epidemiology, drug safety, and other research studies to advance medical knowledge
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