National electrocardiographic mapping by telemedicine for diagnosis and prevention of cardiological pathologies in Paraguay

Introduction: Telemedicine tools offer multiple advantages to achieve an epidemiological screening of communities in rural settings countrywide. However, evidence on the cardiological pathology surveillance in these communities is limited. The feasibility of telemedicine as an electrocardiographic (EKG) mapping tool for the diagnosis and prevention of cardiological pathologies in Paraguay was investigated. Methods: A descriptive study was conducted in 60 telediagnostic centers countrywide in Paraguay to evaluate the feasibility of telemedicine as an EKG mapping tool for the diagnosis and prevention of cardiological pathologies over a period of 5 years from 2014 to 2018. The adherence rate was determined comparing yearly scheduled visits versus fulfilled visits at the telemedicine platform. Results: During the study, 246,217 remote EKG diagnoses were performed in 60 hospitals using telemedicine. The patients were 19.4% children/adolescents and 80.6% adults. The results of EKG tests in the children/adolescent group were 79.4% normal and 20.6% abnormal. The most frequent abnormal heart rhythms observed were sinusal bradicardia (10.6%), sinusal tachycardia (3.2%), and unspecified arrhythmia (2.8%). In the adult group, the results were 66.3% normal and 33.7% abnormal. The most frequent abnormal heart rhythms in this group were sinusal bradicardia (11.2%), blockade of the right branch (4.8%), and left ventricular hypertrophy (4.7%). The most frequent cardiovascular risk factors observed were the association of hypertension and obesity (40%), hypertension and diabetes (20%), and hypertension and dyslipidemia (19%). During the test period (2014–2018), the average rate of patient adherence to the prevention program was 2.26 for each 1000 diagnosis. Conclusion: These results demonstrate the feasibility of telemedicine as an EKG mapping tool for the diagnosis and prevention of cardiological pathologies in low-resource countries, thus enhancing cardiovascular disease surveillance and optimizing human and financial resources.