What are the main patient benefits of using Vitaphone Tele-ECG devices?
Cardiac dysrhythmia is a heart disfunction which is sporadic by nature, often occurring at night when medical help is not available. A correct diagnosis, however, requires an electrocardiogram in order to identify the exact nature of the problem. If the patient is at home at the time, this is clearly impossible - if the symptoms persist, the patient must eventually be hospitalized in order to gain the diagnostic data essential for an effective therapy.

With Vitaphone Tele-ECG devices, the patient can monitor his own condition - anytime, anywhere - and requires no costly and inconvenient hospitalization for the diagnosis of cardiac dysrhythmia

How do Vitaphone Tele-ECG devices work?
The Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR is a credit card-sized device weighing just 37 grams, enabling the patient to manually record up to three electrocardiograms - anytime, anywhere, simply at the touch of a button - and to easily transmit this data via mobile or landline telephone to his doctor in a matter of seconds for the accurate, cost-effective remote diagnosis of symptomatic heart-rhythm problems.

Advantage: the patient is always “connected” and can be monitored long-distance in an efficient and cost-effective way.

The 3-channel Vitaphone Tele-ECG-Loop-Recorder 3300 BT and the 1-channel version (3100BT) both automatically record and transmit symptomatic and asymptomatic heart-rhythm event data. They can be programmed with patient-specific upper/lower thresholds for a number of important cardiological parameters – and constantly monitor the patient over a long period of time, recording new data and overwriting older data in a continuous “loop” (much like an aircraft’s flight recorder).

If these thresholds are exceeded at any time, the device “captures” the event together with the pre-event/post-event phase and automatically transmits the electrocardiogram via Bluetooth/mobile phone or via landline telephone to an automated data processing system in a matter of seconds - the system then instantly forwards the electrocardiogram to the patient’s doctor. The patient merely wears the device, no action is necessary.

Advantage: a conventional 24-/48-hour ECG provides a vast quantity of data which must be evaluated - whether or not the patient suffered from a heart-rhythm problem or not during this time. The Vitaphone Tele-ECG-Loop Recorders provide data of high diagnostic quality only as and when necessary - the intelligent solution.

How good is the quality of an ECG generated by Vitaphone Tele-ECG devices?
The quality of the data does not differ from that of electrocardiograms made by conventional electrocardiogram systems in a typical hospital.

Can I record an ECG by myself?
Yes, the Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR is very easy to use and requires no technical skills whatsoever. The Vitaphone Tele-ECG-Loop-Recorders are simple to use but initially require a brief introduction by your doctor.

Can anyone use a Vitaphone Tele-ECG device?
Every device is registered to a specific patient and the ECG requires expert medical interpretation by someone who knows that patient’s medical history - proper use of the electrocardiogram can only be made under such circumstances.

On the contrary, letting someone else use the device automatically generates a false diagnosis - with serious risk for the patient. Therefore, the Vitaphone Tele-ECG device MUST NOT be used by anyone other than the patient without the doctor’s consent.

Can I provide additional information to my doctor?
Yes, if you send your electrocardiogram manually, by means of acoustic transmission (as opposed to transmission by IR data transfer mode), you should call the telephone number specified on the back of the Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR and follow the recorded instructions – after having sent the ECG data, you will be asked to record a brief message which will be forwarded to your doctor together with your electrocardiogram.

This feature is only available when sending 1 electrocardiogram - the message applies to the circumstances pertaining to that event only. As the device can store up to 3 electrocardiograms recorded at different points in time, it would make no sense to accompany such electrocardiograms with a single message - in this event, the message feature is disabled.

The message-recording feature is not available for the Vitaphone Tele-ECG-Loop-Recorders.

How can I send the ECG to my doctor? Which type of telephones should be used? What should I bear in mind when sending an ECG?
You can send your doctor an electrocardiogram very easily using any conventional landline telephone or a mobile telephone, according to your needs. Ideally, you should send your ECG by acoustic transmission from a quiet place as loud background noises will interfere with data transmission - if data transmission is unsuccessful, you will be alerted and requested to try again.

Will any mobile telephone do?
The mobile phone should feature IR (infrared) data transfer capability for the fastest and most comfortable transmission of data from your Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR to the mobile phone, and onwards to our Tele-ECG system. However, different mobile phone models use different IR standards and therefore some models will not work in this mode. Data from a Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR can also be transmitted manually using any mobile or conventional landline telephone. The Vitaphone Tele-ECG-Loop-Recorders employ Bluetooth wireless technology to transmit data to the mobile phone and then on to our Tele-ECG system – therefore, the mobile phone being used should feature Bluetooth (and not IR). In order to guarantee problem-free automatic transmission of data, for the UAE market we supply every Vitaphone device with a suitable mobile phone and Etisalat Wasel SIM card.

Does successful sending of the ECG depend on my mobile telephone service provider (e.g. Etisalat)?
If you are using a mobile phone, successful operation depends upon the fact that your mobile telecom service provider may - or may not - support data transmission services. In order to guarantee problem-free automatic transmission of data, for the UAE market we supply every Vitaphone device with a suitable mobile phone and Etisalat Wasel SIM card which has been enabled for data transmission services.

Do I see the result of the ECG myself?
The ECG requires expert medical interpretation, and therefore Vitaphone forwards your electrocardiogram directly to your doctor for assessment so that he may draw the appropriate conclusions and decide upon the steps to be taken.

How much time does it take for my doctor to receive the ECG?
The time required by the system, from when the data is sent by the user to when the data is received as email by the doctor, is well under 1 minute (provided that the telephone network is available). Vitaphone supplies the doctor with a tele-diagnostic instrument - any subsequent action is taken at the doctor’s responsibility.

Can I change or recharge the battery in the Tele-ECG device?
The Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR is sealed, battery lifetime is at least 5 years. It cannot be recharged or substituted by anyone other than Vitaphone. The 2 alkaline AAA batteries of the Vitaphone Tele-ECG-Loop Recorders have a lifetime of at least 15 days and can be easily changed by the user.

What could interfere with the successful recording of an ECG?
The Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR needs bare-skin contact with the user in order to guarantee correct function - therefore, a hairy chest could interfere with the successful recording of an electrocardiogram. This also applies to heavy perspiration (the device is NOT waterproof) The Vitaphone Tele-ECG-Loop Recorders use adhesive electrodes which must also enjoy good contact with the user’s dry skin in order to function correctly. When using the Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR, it is essential to assume a relaxed position, assure good contact with the skin and avoid movement.

What could interfere with the successful transmission of an ECG?
Apart from
1) incompatibility of the Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR’s IR feature with the mobile phone being used,
2) unavailability of the CSD feature (service provider setting) making the IR feature ineffective,
3) incorrect distance between the Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR and the mobile phone’s infrared port ,
4) obstructed infrared signal path, or
5) loud background noise when sending the ECG by acoustic transmission,

problems may arise from an incorrect distance between the Vitaphone Tele-ECG-card 100 IR’s loudspeaker and the telephone’s mouthpiece when sending the ECG by acoustic transmission. Data transmission may be enhanced by pressing the “send” key for 2 seconds thereby turning off the “turbo” transmission mode. Please refer to the instructions.

The Vitaphone Tele-ECG-Loop Recorders can also send ECG data manually by acoustic transmission, but the preferred and simplest way to transmit ECG data is via a mobile phone and the Bluetooth function - in this case, the Vitaphone Tele-ECG-Loop Recorder must be correctly “paired” with the mobile phone - see the instructions - and be within Bluetooth range (approx. 10 metres indoors) in order to guarantee proper function.

Can any harm be done by Vitaphone Tele-ECG devices?
Vitaphone Tele-ECG devices record electrical signals emitted by the user’s heart - in principle, like a thermometer measures body temperature (fever). They do not influence body functions in any way whatsoever and are therefore completely harmless. Vitaphone does not imply that data generated by the Tele-ECG devices is immediately evaluated by the doctor receiving the relative electrocardiogram - the quality and timing of medical response towards the user of the device is a matter between the doctor and the patient at the doctor’s sole responsibility.

Can patients buy Vitaphone Tele-ECG devices directly?
The information generated by Vitaphone Tele-ECG devices requires expert medical interpretation and is therefore of no practical use to the patient - this is also true of electrocardiograms generated by hospital-based equipment, to X-ray images or other diagnostic data.

Therefore, we supply our Tele-ECG products exclusively to healthcare professionals and institutes. We nonetheless welcome interest from the patient and would be happy to supply your doctor with further information upon request.