Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020 Sep 29;2(4):247-253.
doi: 10.36628/ijhf.2020.0025. eCollection 2020 Oct.

Telehealth in Heart Failure Care during COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown in Argentina

Lucrecia María Burgos  1 , Mariano Benzadón  1 , Alfonsina Candiello  1 , Miguel Hector Cabral  1 , Diego Conde  1 , Alves Alberto de Lima  1 , Jorge Belardi  1 , Mirta Diez  1
Affiliations

Telehealth in Heart Failure Care during COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown in Argentina

Lucrecia María Burgos et al. Int J Heart Fail. .

Abstract

Background and objectives: During the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, virtual visits (VVs) were recommended as an innovative and necessary alternative for patients with heart failure (HF). To assess the feasibility and acceptability of VVs in patients with HF, pulmonary hypertension (PH), and heart transplant (HT).

Methods: We designed a single-centre cohort study. Consecutive VVs performed in our HF unit were analysed. The period comprehended between January 1st and March 19th (before COVID-19) and March 20th and June 30th (during COVID-19) was compared. We assessed acceptability, feasibility and the need for diagnostic studies, in-person medical evaluation, and hospitalization at 30 days.

Results: HF unit medical doctors conducted 22 VVs in the pre-COVID period and 416 VVs during the COVID period. The VV was able to be performed in all patients scheduled for it and 44% answered the survey. Ninety percent of the patients who answered the survey strongly agreed that VVs were easy to be carried out. All the patients "strongly agreed" or "agreed" that their health problem could be resolved. Most patients (95%) rated the global experience as very good or excellent, with an overall average rate of 9.76±0.5 out of 10. We found no differences regarding the requirement of diagnostic studies, in-person medical evaluation and hospitalization during the first month after VVs between the 2 periods.

Conclusions: VVs were feasible, presented high acceptability, and the overall experience was positive in patients with HF, PH, and HT, being this modality a valuable tool that complements in-person care.

Keywords: COVID-19; Heart failure; Pandemic; SARS-CoV-2; Telehealth.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: The authors have no financial conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. HF unit and number of VVs in before and during COVID-19 period.
COVID-19 = coronavirus disease 2019; HF = heart failure; VV = virtual visit.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Virtual visit acceptability coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bozovich GE, Alves de Lima A, Fosco M, et al. Collateral damage of COVID-19 pandemic in private healthcare centres of Argentina. Medicina (B Aires) 2020;80 Suppl 3:37–41. - PubMed
    1. De Rosa S, Spaccarotella C, Basso C, et al. Reduction of hospitalizations for myocardial infarction in Italy in the COVID-19 era. Eur Heart J. 2020;41:2083–2088. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Solomon MD, McNulty EJ, Rana JS, et al. The COVID-19 pandemic and the incidence of acute myocardial infarction. N Engl J Med. 2020;383:691–693. - PubMed
    1. Bromage DI, Cannatà A, Rind IA, et al. The impact of COVID-19 on heart failure hospitalization and management: report from a heart failure unit in London during the peak of the pandemic. Eur J Heart Fail. 2020;22:978–984. - PMC - PubMed
    1. El-Hamamsy I, Brinster DR, DeRose JJ, et al. The COVID-19 pandemic and acute aortic dissections in New York: a matter of public health. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2020;76:227–229. - PMC - PubMed