Digital health refers to the use of information and
communications technologies in healthcare to manage illnesses and health risks
and to promote wellness. This can include technology to provide health
education and awareness through text messaging, remote blood pressure monitoring
and support (telerehabilitation), disease prediction and vital signs
monitoring, among others.
Digital health interventions are constantly growing and
being evaluated to support prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease. We work to understand and implement digital solutions that can improve
overall patient outcomes.
Explore research activities in the Digital
Health theme. Names shown indicate authors or co-authors involved from the
Centre for Cardiovascular Health.
Who benefits from cardiovascular risk reduction programmes? Building a Scottish observatory to measure the impact of blood pressure (BP) telemonitoring and future cardiovascular risk reduction interventions:
The British Heart Foundation has teamed up with Scottish Government to support a program called "Scale Up BP." This program uses technology to help people monitor their blood pressure from home, aiming to find and manage high blood pressure better. The goal is to reduce heart-related health problems and deaths.
It's challenging to measure how much this program helps people's health and healthcare services. Right now, we mostly measure how many people join and ask for the opinions of patients and healthcare professionals.
In the study we will create a system that looks at health records to track what happens to people with conditions like high blood pressure or atrial fibrillation. We will use this system to see how much "Scale Up BP" really helps.
Detect AF
Detect AF is a feasibility study to identify atrial fibrillation (AF) (a common abnormal heart rhythm) in a dental hospital setting. A feasibility study is a smaller version of a full-scale evaluation study.
In the study we will check the heart rhythms of 1000 people aged 65 or older during their regular dental hospital visit. We will use a device called Kardia Mobile™ to detect whether or not people have AF. We want to understand if it is possible to use this technology in a dental setting. In the future we may be able to understand if there is a link between dental health and AF.
James Lind Alliance
Our "Digital Health for Heart Health Priority Setting Partnership" is a project that involves patients,
caregivers, and healthcare experts. Together, we aim to set priorities for
digital heart health research. We plan to do this by conducting surveys and a
workshop in the UK and Republic of Ireland asking what questions need to be
answered. We will create a ‘top ten’ list of research questions which will inform future heart research.
You can complete the survey HERE. Closes 29/11/2023.
