Telecardiology in the Management of Acute Cardiovascular Diseases: Case of the Ivorian Experience

Abstract

Objective: Telemedicine is a tool to overcome the lack of access to health facilities in remote populations. The main aim was to assess a field of Telemedicine, Telecardiology in the management of acute electrocardiographic abnormalities in Ivory Coast. Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive and analytical study conducted from June 30, 2022 to September 30, 2022 which involved 19 health centers selected in the Teleelectrocardiogramm Project. Results: 529 ECGs were recorded. The prevalence of acute abnormalities was 52.93% (n=280). Atrial fibrillation, acute coronary syndrome, left ventricular hypertrophy and ventricular extrasystoles were the main causes of acute abnormalities. The presence of them was in older people (59.91 versus 54.95 years, p=0.00). Within 06 hours, abnormalities were diagnosed 70.86% of cases without any significant difference (p=0.056). Age class, gender, region of origin and blood pressure profile did not significantly influence the occurrence of ECG acuity. In 85% (n=238) of cases, the teleExpert recommended cardiological consultation via the interpretation platform (83.19%, n=198). In terms of follow-up over one month, more than half of the patients were reachable (n=174) compared to 38% who were unreachable. The main reasons were contactless files (67.92%, n=72), contact errors (13.21%, n=14) and the contact unavailability (11.32, n=12). Patients were informed about their remote diagnoses in 15% of cases (n=26). More than half of the patient evolved favorably (76.44%, n=133). Conclusion: Telecardiology contributes to the diagnosis of acute cardiovascular abnormalities for health centers without specialists. It can help primary care practitioners with immediate triage, which would result in early management.