FDA Considers Implant to Enable High Blood Pressure Monitoring via Internet

The FDA is considering a device, called a remote hemodynamic monitor, for approval to be used in humans. The tiny device in question is meant to be implanted inside one of several locations in the body - the heart wall, interior of blood vessels, and heart chambers are a few of the proposed locations. Once implanted, the device is able to constantly monitor heart rate, blood pressure, and a number of other physiologic traits, beaming the information wirelessly to a computer. The computer, in turn, can then send the information remotely to a processing center at a doctor's office.

Designed as a way to monitor high risk patients, the device purports to decrease the amount of time needed for routine "number checks" in doctor's offices. The price, though, may be prohibitive for some - the device itself is expected to cost somewhere between $5,000 and $7,000, not including the cost of implantation or monitoring. The FDA has no official statement on when they expect to issue their conclusions.

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