Medtronic announces U.S. launch of remote monitoring system

Medtronic on Tuesday announced the United States launch of a remote monitoring service that officials say will shorten the treatment wait times at clinics and emergency rooms for patients with implanted cardiac devices. When a patient with a pacemaker, loop recorder or an implantable cardioverter defibrillator has to go to the hospital or clinic for any reason, medical personnel routinely check the status of their device while they are there. But that requires that they are checked in person by a qualified expert, something that can take hours, depending on how long it takes that expert to get to the patient. Not with Medtronic's CareLink Express service, officials said Tuesday. A recent 50-site pilot program found that hospitals that use CareLink Express reduced these device checks from an average of 84 minutes to less than 15 minutes. Not only that, but the system also sends a real-time report to the patient's primary physician to alert them of the hospital or clinic visit. On Tuesday, Medtronic was touting the potential cost-savings of CareLink Express, saying that one facility, the Forsyth Medical Center in Greensboro, NC, saved an estimated $130,000 in two and a half months. For more information on CareLink Express, go to: http://wwwp.medtronic.com/Newsroom/NewsReleaseDetails.do?itemId=1344869505352&lang=en_US