The Effects of Telemonitoring on Patient Compliance With Self-Management Recommendations and Outcomes of the Innovative Telemonitoring Enhanced Care Program for Chronic Heart Failure: Randomized Controlled Trial

BackgroundTelemonitoring enables care providers to remotely support outpatients in self-managing chronic heart failure (CHF), but the objective assessment of patient compliance with self-management recommendations has seldom been studied. ObjectiveThis study aimed to evaluate patient compliance with self-management recommendations of an innovative telemonitoring enhanced care program for CHF (ITEC-CHF). MethodsWe conducted a multicenter randomized controlled trial with a 6-month follow-up. The ITEC-CHF program comprised the provision of Bluetooth-enabled scales linked to a call center and nurse care services to assist participants with weight monitoring compliance. Compliance was defined a priori as weighing at least 4 days per week, analyzed objectively from weight recordings on the scales. The intention-to-treat principle was used to perform the analysis. ResultsA total of 184 participants (141/184, 76.6% male), with a mean age of 70.1 (SD 12.3) years, were randomized to receive either ITEC-CHF (n=91) or usual care (control; n=93), of which 67 ITEC-CHF and 81 control participants completed the intervention. For the compliance criterion of weighing at least 4 days per week, the proportion of compliant participants in the ITEC-CHF group was not significantly higher than that in the control group (ITEC-CHF: 67/91, 74% vs control: 56/91, 60%; P=.06). However, the proportion of ITEC-CHF participants achieving the stricter compliance standard of at least 6 days a week was significantly higher than that in the control group (ITEC-CHF: 41/91, 45% vs control: 23/93, 25%; P=.005). ConclusionsITEC-CHF improved participant compliance with weight monitoring, although the withdrawal rate was high. Telemonitoring is a promising method for supporting both patients and clinicians in the management of CHF. However, further refinements are required to optimize this model of care. Trial RegistrationAustralian New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry ACTRN12614000916640; https://www.anzctr.org.au/Trial/Registration/TrialReview.aspx?id=366691