AT&T has inked a deal with eCardio Diagnostics to provide wireless connectivity to the arrhythmia monitoring company's near real-time cardiac monitoring devices. eCardio’s monitoring devices enable heart patients to recover at home rather than spend additional time in the hospital and aim to help reduce re-admissions among heart patients.
According to the companies' release, "eCardio has implemented the monitoring solution on almost 10,000 cardiac devices with plans to deploy it across thousands more over the next year," however, earlier this year eCardio reported that its services had been used by more than 20,000 users to date. In February, the Houston Chronicle reported that eCardio had crossed the 20,000 user mark. Back then eCardio said that both Medicare and private insurers reimburse for its services and that the company was profitable.
Houston-based startup eCardio, founded in 2004, offers a device that lets doctors monitor patients’ hearts remotely. eCardio's patients wear a device that the company describes as the "size of a BlackBerry." The device sits on their hip or hangs around their neck and connects to two electrodes that monitor the heart’s electrical activity. Inside the device is a microprocessor that analyzes the data and then wirelessly transfers the data to the company’s monitoring center, which verifies it and sends it to the physician. Also of note: Sequoia Capital invested an undisclosed amount into the company to help it acquire other startups last year, however, eCardio never disclosed whether it acquired any.
Wireless remote monitoring for patients with heart conditions is fast becoming a crowded space: CardioNet, the only pureplay wireless health company to have gone public. LifeWatch, a Switzerland-based company has a competing product supported by Verizon Wireless. San Diego-based startup Corventis also received FDA approval for its MCOT system earlier this year, but has remained quiet since.
Almost exactly a year ago today, AT&T announced a similar deal to provide connectivity to Vitality's medication adherence device: GlowCap.
More from the companies' press release
