Warfarin Management by Telehealth
From Capsil Wiki
- Objectives - To compare the effectiveness of using telemedicine against 'usual care' for 1300 patients on Warafin anti-coagulation therapy.
- Details - Patients on Warfarin for anti-coagulation purposes need to regularly check their INR levels to avoid dangerous over or under-dosing with the drug. They can do this in two ways; either they can do the INR checks themselves, or they can go to the doctor for the checks, which usually have to be conducted once a week. In this trial, the telemedicine patients did the INR measurements at home and then transmitted the INR values via their mobile phone to a web-based personal health record. The results were checked by the experts at the clinic. If any change in warfarin dosage was necessary, the experts contacted the patient and told them what to do.
- Results - According to the clinical director of the trial:
- "The result was that, in both groups, more than 80% of patients reached a stable INR. This means that telemedical support is as effective as the gold standard, which is INR self management"
- The study also showed that patients gained self-confidence when being assisted by telemedicine. Many patients found that after a year of telemedicine support, they no longer needed such assistance in keeping INR stable. “So a one year telemedicine programme should make INR self management a feasible and safe option for far more patients.”
- Further Plans - The trial is being looked in a German-wide context and reimbursement schemes are being considered.
