Jersey General Hospital will work with the University of Oxford to conduct a clinical trial into a complex heart condition that is becoming increasingly common.
The two-year study, named ISLE HFpEF, will see how wearable monitors can track data, such as heart rate, whilst participants do physical exercise.
It will delve into Heart Failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), caused by conditions including obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure.
In 2024, cardiovascular diseases accounted for 27% of deaths in Jersey.
The digital monitoring system, with a motion accelerometer patch', tracks activity, and a smart ring checks the body's data.
It is believed that the technology will help in the early detection of heart failure and provide ongoing monitoring to assess a patient's reaction to treatment.
This clinical trial will also help researchers explore the impact of iron in the bloodstream in treating HFpEF.
Jersey Heart Failure Team. Credit: Digital Jersey
Aaron Henry, Cardiology Doctor at the Jersey General Hospital, says being able to use digital wearable technologies has the potential to provide a much more accurate picture of a patient’s situation.
"[This] ultimately [provides] better outcomes for them whilst also reducing healthcare costs.
"This is particularly important in Jersey, which, as a small island, faces additional constraints, making innovative approaches like this absolutely essential.
"This project represents an exciting opportunity for Jersey to become a world leader in digital health technologies and revolutionise how we undertake cardiology trials."
The money has been awarded by the Impact Jersey ‘Innovation Programme’, administered by Digital Jersey on behalf of the government.
The funding is aimed at supporting the development of tech solutions to some of the island's biggest challenges.
A second project has bene given almost £500,000.
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