CLINICAL RESEARCH IN LATIN AMERICA: FROM SPONSORED TO INVESTIGATOR INITIATED RESEARCH

Latin American clinical researchers had participated in many controlled clinical trials in the 80 s and 90 s sponsored initiated that confirmed the place of calcium channel blockers and RAS blockade in hypertension treatment. Later, non-inferiority or superiority trials like ONTARGET, Ongoing Telmisartan Alone and in Combination with Ramipril Global Endpoint Trial and VALUE, Valsartan Antihypertensive Long-term Use Evaluation were performed worldwide including Latin-American countries. In the last decade, the absence of new drugs in the pipeline and sponsors portfolios at one side, and the recommendation of fixeddose combination as initial treatment tool at the other could be supposed as main causes of a dramatic reduction in sponsored hypertension research. At the same time, a huge increase in investigator initiated research was observed. Scientific national and regional societies in many cases fueled this increase. In this scenario, the Cardiovascular Risk Factor Multiple Evaluation in Latin America, CARMELA study was the first large-scale population-based study that assessed cardiovascular risk factor prevalence in 7 Latin American cities and its relationship to hypertension mediated organ damage. CARMELA is an example of an epidemiological study investigator initiated supported by a sponsor in Latin America The FOCUS study, Fixed-Dose Combination Drug for Secondary Cardiovascular Prevention was another example of an investigator initiated research supported by a private company. FOCUS was funded by the 7th Framework Programme European Commission Consortium with the participation of the Centro Nacional De Investigaciones Cardiovasculares CNIC Madrid, Spain, World Heart Federation, Federación Argentina De Cardiología, and some European research organizations, supported by FERRER Internacional. FOCUS help to understand the reasons of treatment non-adherence in Latin American countries and also to recognize the potential benefits of fixed-dose combinations in secondary prevention. More recently, the Interamerican Society of Cardiology SIAC developed the CorCOVID Latam study which aim was to study changes in lifestyle habits, treatment adherence, and mental health status in patients with cardiometabolic disease, but no clinical evidence of COVID-19 during the pandemic. This study is a good example of the feasibility of non-sponsored research in Latam supported by a regional scientific society structure and members. Five publications related to gender differences in the impact of the pandemic in Latam, Influenza and Pneumococcal vaccination during the pandemic, and the psychological impact in more than 4 thousand patients were the fruit of this society research initiative.

MORTALITY RATE AND REDUCTION OF HOSPITALIZATION FOR ACUTE MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION IN RESEARCH INSTITUTE OF CARDIOLOGY<RIC>,BAKU IN COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Aims: To study the impact of quarantine during COVID19 pandemic on admission of patients with myocardial infarction to the intensive cardiac care unit of Research Institute of Cardiology Methods and Results: We conducted a single-centre,observational survey to collect data on admissions for acute myocardial infarction(AMI) at ICCU RIC during strict quarantine in April-May 2020,in Baku,Azerbaijan,compared with April-May 2019. We observe 10% reduction in admission rate for AMII patients admitted at intensive cardiac care unit in April-May 2020 in comparison to April- May 2019. We observed significant 40% reduction in admissions for AMI in April 2020 compared with April 2019, it also turned out to be the lowest number of intensive cardiac care unit admissions for AMI among all months of the last 5 years. Fatality cases of patients admitted in April-May 2020, was 70% higher than in the equivalent period of 2019. The month of May, following the month of April 2020, had the mortality rate of 26.6% among acute myocardial infarction patients admitted to the intensive cardiac care unit, and it was the highest mortality rate among all months in the last 5 years. During the April 2020, the first month of strict quarantine, in 86,6% < 13 out of 15>of AMI patients admitted to ICCU used narcotic analgesics to relieve pain. In May, narcotic analgesics for pain relief were used in 36.6% or in 11 out of 30 patients.86,6%, the percentage of patients with AMI who received narcotic analgesics for pain relief in April 2020 was the highest among 15 months, from April 2019 to June 2020.<see table 2>. (Table Presented).

COVID-19 Management in Children: Approach in Pediatric Cardiology

In children, cardiac involvement can be observed during the course of COVID-19, which is mostly mild, and COVID-19 may develop in children who have previously been known to have congenital or acquired heart disease. The subject of this article is how these children should be evaluated cardiacly, and how the follow-up and treatment of children with heart disease will be managed during the pandemic. Considering the articles and guides published in the literature, some determinations were made and the suggestions developed were presented in this article.

The clinical course of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension after COVID-19

The COVID-19 (COronaVIrus Disease 2019) caused more than 3.5 million deaths all over the world. Patients who have underlying comorbidity, such as cardiovascular and pulmonary diseases have shown worse prognosis. In view of this, undivided attention was focused on patients with such rare conditions as pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). There is currently limited data available regarding COVID-19 infection in CTEPH patients. The available data are mostly case studies or small case series. The aim of this publication was to describe the course of COVID-19 in patients with previously diagnosed CTEPH. Methods. The study included 92 patients with an established diagnosis of CTEPH, who were managed in the Federal State Budgetary Institution National medical research center of cardiology named after academician E.I.Chazov, Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation. 62 patients with CTEPH and confirmed COVID-19 were enrolled, including 62% women. The mean age was 55.8 ± 14.8 years. Results. The duration of COVID-19 was 14 [10;30] days. The fever, general weakness, anosmia, and dyspnea were the most frequent presentations at diagnosis of COVID-19 in CTEPH patients. According to the multispiral computed tomography (CT) chest scans, more than half of the patients (54.2%) had mild disease (category CT-1). Most of the patients were under specific therapy (92%), mainly riociguat at an average daily dose of 5.75 ± 2.2 mg/day. All patients received anticoagulants. No need for long-term respiratory support and no lethal outcomes were registered in the study group. Conclusion. Small pilot studies demonstrated favorable clinical course of COVID-19 in CTEPH patients. This finding could be explained by the protective effect of anticoagulation and specific treatment.

A Model to Predict Heartbeat Rate Using Deep Learning Algorithms.

ECG provides critical information in a waveform about the heart's condition. This information is crucial to physicians as it is the first thing to be performed by cardiologists. When COVID-19 spread globally and became a pandemic, the government of Saudi Arabia placed various restrictions and guidelines to protect and save citizens and residents. One of these restrictions was preventing individuals from touching any surface in public and private places. In addition, the authorities placed a mandatory rule in all public facilities and the private sector to evaluate the temperature of individuals before entering. Thus, the idea of this study stems from the need to have a touchless technique to determine heartbeat rate. This article proposes a viable and dependable method to estimate an average heartbeat rate based on the reflected light on the skin. This model uses various deep learning tools, including AlexNet, Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), Long Short-Term Memory Networks (LSTMs), and ResNet50V2. Three scenarios have been conducted to evaluate and validate the presented model. In addition, the proposed approach takes its inputs from video streams and converts these streams into frames and images. Numerous trials have been conducted on volunteers to validate the method and assess its outputs in terms of accuracy, mean absolute error (MAE), and mean squared error (MSE). The proposed model achieves an average 99.78% accuracy, MAE is 0.142 when combing LSTMs and ResNet50V2, while MSE is 1.82. Moreover, a comparative measurement between the presented algorithm and some studies from the literature based on utilized methods, MAE, and MSE are performed. The achieved outcomes reveal that the developed technique surpasses other methods. Moreover, the findings show that this algorithm can be applied in healthcare facilities and aid physicians.

Educational Experience of Interventional Cardiology Fellows in the United States and Canada.

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic and iodinated contrast shortage may have affected interventional cardiology (IC) fellowship training. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the educational experience of first-year IC fellows in the United States and Canada. METHODS: A 59-question online survey was conducted among 2021-2022 first-year IC fellows in the United States and Canada. RESULTS: Of the 360 IC fellows invited to participate, 111 (31%) responded; 95% were from the United States, and 79% were men. Participants were mostly from university programs (70%), spent 61 to 70 hours/week in the hospital, and had an annual percutaneous coronary intervention case number of <200 (5%), 200 to 249 (8%), 250 to 349 (33%), 350 to 499 (39%), 500 to 699 (12%), or ≥700 (3%). For femoral access, a micropuncture needle was used regularly by 89% and ultrasound-guided puncture by 81%, and 43% used vascular closure devices in most cases (>80%). Intravascular ultrasound was performed and interpreted very comfortably by 62% and optical coherence tomography (OCT) by 32%, and 20% did not have access to OCT. Approximately one-third felt very comfortable performing various atherectomy techniques. Covered stents, fat embolization, and coil embolization were used very comfortably by 14%, 4%, and 3%, respectively. Embolic protection devices were used very comfortably by 11% to 24% of IC fellows. Almost one-quarter of fellows (24%) were warned about their high radiation exposure. Eighty-four percent considered IC fellowship somewhat or very stressful, and 16% reported inadequate psychological support. CONCLUSIONS: This survey highlights opportunities for improvement with regard to the use of intravascular imaging, atherectomy techniques, complication prevention and management strategies, radiation awareness and mitigation, and psychological support.

Improving Specialty Care Access via Telemedicine.

Introduction: Telehealth is a potential solution to persistent disparities in health and health care access by eliminating structural barriers to care. However, its adoption in urban underserved settings has been limited and remains poorly characterized. Methods: This is a prospective cohort study of patients receiving telemedicine (TM) consultation for specialty care of diabetes, hypertension, and/or kidney disease with a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) as the originating site and an academic medical center (AMC) multispecialty group practice as the distant site in an urban setting. Primary data were collected onsite at a local FQHC and an urban AMC between March 2017 and March 2020, before the COVID-19 pandemic. Clinical outcomes of study participants were compared with matched controls (CON) from a sister FQHC site who were referred for traditional in-person specialty visits at the AMC. No-show rates for study participants were calculated and compared to their no-show rates for standard (STD) in-person specialty visits at the AMC during the study period. A patient satisfaction questionnaire was administered at the end of each TM visit. Results: Visit attendance data were analyzed for 104 patients (834 visits). The no-show rate was 15%. The adjusted odds ratio for no-show for TM versus STD visits was 1.03 [0.66-1.63], p = 0.87. There were no significant differences between TM and CON groups in the change from pre- to intervention periods for mean arterial pressure (p = 0.26), serum creatinine (p = 0.90), or estimated glomerular filtration rate (p = 0.56). The reduction in hemoglobin A1c was significant at a trend level (p = 0.053). Patients indicated high overall satisfaction with TM. Discussion: The study demonstrated improved glycemic control and equivalent outcomes in TM management of hypertension and kidney disease with excellent patient satisfaction. This supports ongoing efforts to increase the availability of TM to improve access to care for urban underserved populations.

Wellens Syndrome: A Possible Precursor.

Wellens syndrome is a precursor of left anterior descending (LAD) coronary stenosis. It is characterized by biphasic T waves in V2-V3 (type A) or negative deep T waves in V2-V4 (type B). The ability of emergency physicians, hospitalists, or primary care providers to recognize these early ECG patterns is primordial because the definitive treatment is urgent cardiac catheterization with percutaneous coronary intervention. However, failure to identify a type A or type B Wellens syndrome may lead to devastating outcomes, such as myocardial infarction or even death. We presented a clinical case of Wellens' syndrome with deep T waves in V2-V3 associated with COVID pneumonia, pleural effusions, and congestive heart failure that went to a rapid and massive myocardial infarction.

It's not the shunt: an atypical cause of fever in an infant with hydrocephalus

Case Report:We present a 5-year-old male with two days of fever, cough, vomiting, and loose stools. His history is significant for premature birth (35 weeks gestational age) and shunted hydrocephalus. A ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt was placed 6 days prior to presentation. Parental report included episodes of post-tussive, nonbloody, non-bilious emesis, poor oral intake, tachypnea, and increased work of breathing. Physical examination demonstrated a dehydrated infant with sunken fontanelles. He had no notable rash, no lymphadenopathy, and clear conjunctiva. His VP shunt site appeared normal without swelling or erythema. Initial evaluation showed elevated inflammatory markers -ESR 51 and CRP 12.32 mg/dL. A viral respiratory PCR panel returned positive for coronavirus (not SARS-CoV-2). A head CT scan and shunt radiography series showed no abnormalities with his shunt. The following morning, Radiology reported an incidental retropharyngeal fluid collection on a re-read of the patient's initial CT scan. A neck CT was obtained and demonstrated a fluid pocket with secondary mass effect in addition to bilateral cervical lymphadenopathy. Screening blood cultures were negative. The patient remained febrile (tmax 103.6F) and developed a transaminitis (ALT 264.9, AST 654), elevated fibrinogen 476, elevated INR 1.4, and low albumin 2.1. Abdominal ultrasound showed a normal the liver and biliary tract. His transaminitis resolved without treatment. The next day, the patient developed lip erythema and conjunctival injection. An echocardiogram showed a dilated right coronary artery (z-score of 3.59) and his inflammatory markers (ESR 26, CRP 9.63) remained elevated. Treatment was initiated with IVIG and moderate-dose aspirin. The patient defervesced, and he remained afebrile for over 48 hours prior to discharge. A repeat echocardiogram 2 days later showed a slight reduction in coronary artery dilatation (z-score 3.39). Hewas discharged on lowdose aspirin, and followed up with cardiology as an outpatient. Kawasaki's Disease (KD) is most common in children from ages 1 to 4 years and is classically characterized by persistent fever with a constellation of symptoms including limbal sparing conjunctivitis, cervical lymphadenopathy, polymorphous rash, strawberry tongue, oral changes, and extremity changes. Our patient presented at a younger age with a concurrent diagnosis of coronavirus upper respiratory tract infection. His atypical hospital course and incidental finding of retropharyngeal edema and transaminitis increased the clinical suspicion for KD. His symptoms rapidly improved after administration of IVIG. Younger patients are at an increased risk for severe complications of KD including coronary aneurysm. KD has been shown in the literature to have an association with coronavirus infection as well as presentation with retropharyngeal edema. Clinicians should consider KD in their differential even if patients do not meet all criteria for diagnosis on initial presentation. Copyright © 2023 Southern Society for Clinical Investigation.

Abstracts from international emergency medicine journals

Editor's note: EMJ has partnered with the journals of multiple international emergency medicine societies to share from each a highlighted research study, as selected by their editors. This edition will feature an from each publication.

Creating Audio-Visual Content for a Personalized Prevention Programme in Coronary Heart Disease

Coronary heart disease (CHD) remains the leading cause of premature death worldwide. Better risk stratification tools and personalized care of patients are needed for reducing the morbidity and mortality of CHD and the associated economic burden. However, contemporary e-learning solutions lack personalization and shared decision making and as a result, overwhelm patients with large amounts of information. CoroPrevention is a multiyear, EU-funded Horizon 2020 research project aiming to shape and implement a personalized secondary prevention strategy for patients with established CHD. As a part of the project, new digital tools will also be validated. In this paper, we discuss the process of creating audio-visual content for the CoroPrevention mobile application during the challenging COVID-19 pandemic. © 2022 IEEE.

ELITE: rationale and design of a longitudinal elite athlete, extreme cardiovascular phenotyping, prospective cohort study.

Introduction: The cardiovascular benefits of physical exercise are well-known. However, vigorous exercise has also been associated with adverse cardiac effects. To improve our understanding of cardiovascular adaptation to exercise versus maladaptation and pathology, the limits of adaptation should be firmly established using state-of-the-art diagnostic modalities. We therefore initiated the Evaluation of Lifetime participation in Intensive Top-level sports and Exercise (ELITE) cohort to investigate the longitudinal (beneficial and pathological) cardiovascular effects of intensive elite sports and exercise. Methods and analysis: ELITE is a prospective, multicentre, longitudinal cohort study. Elite athletes, from the age of sixteen, are recruited in The Netherlands. The primary objective is to determine the association between elite sports and exercise-induced cardiac remodelling, cardiac pathology, and health benefits over time. Secondary objectives include determining and identifying genetic profiles of elite athletes, and how these are associated with cardiac indices. ELITE will collect data from consultations, electrocardiography, echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, and training- and injury data. ELITE will also collect blood for biobanking and cardiogenetics. Follow-up will take place at intervals of two to five years, and after the elite athletes' professional careers have ended. In addition, a subcohort of ELITE has been established to investigate cardiac sequelae following infections associated with myocardial involvement, including SARS-CoV-2. ELITE is a prospective observational study; therefore, analyses will be primarily explorative. Ethics and dissemination: This study has been approved by the Medical Ethics Review Board of the Amsterdam University Medical Centers (NL71682.018.19). The results of the study will be disseminated by publication in peer-reviewed journals (Netherlands Trial Register number: NL9328).

Effect of Austrian COVID-19 lockdowns on acute myocardial infarction frequency and long-term mortality: a multicentre observational study.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to find out if the decrease in acute myocardial infarction (AMI) admissions during the first COVID-19 lockdowns (LD), which was described by previous studies, occurred equally in all LD periods (LD1, LD2, LD2021), which had identical restrictions. Further, we wanted to analyse if the decrease of AMI admission had any association with the 1-year mortality rate. DESIGN AND SETTING: This study is a prospective observational study of two centres that are participating in the Vienna ST-elevation myocardial infarction network. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 1732 patients who presented with AMI according to the 4th universal definition of myocardial infarction in 2019, 2020 and the LD period of 2021 were included in our study. Patients with myocardial infarction with non-obstructive coronary arteries were excluded from our study. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The primary outcome of this study was the frequency of AMI during the LD periods and the all-cause and cardiac-cause 1-year mortality rate of 2019 (pre-COVID-19) and 2020. RESULTS: Out of 1732 patients, 70% (n=1205) were male and median age was 64 years. There was a decrease in AMI admissions of 55% in LD1, 28% in LD2 and 17% in LD2021 compared with 2019.There were no differences in all-cause 1-year mortality between the year 2019 (11%; n=110) and 2020 (11%; n=79; p=0.92) or death by cardiac causes [10% (n=97) 2019 vs 10% (n=71) 2020; p=0.983]. CONCLUSION: All LDs showed a decrease in AMI admissions, though not to the same extent, even though the regulatory measures were equal. Admission in an LD period was not associated with cardiac or all-cause 1-year mortality rate in AMI patients in our study.

[Nuclear Cardiology in the COVID-19 pandemic]. / La cardiología nuclear en la pandemia COVID-19.

SARS-CoV-2 infection has a very important relationship with cardiovascular disease. Since the beginning of the pandemic, a close relationship has been observed between cardiovascular comorbidity and a worse prognosis in COVID-19 patients. The study of the pathophysiology of SARS-CoV-2 infection and cardiovascular disease suggests several concomitant hypotheses: direct myocardial damage by the virus, hypoxemia secondary to respiratory failure, inflammatory response to infection and/or thromboembolic phenomena. Cardiovascular damage can manifest in the acute phase of infection with acute myocardial infarction, myocarditis, arrhythmias..., during this phase Nuclear Cardiology procedures have not played a determining role in the diagnosis and management of these patients. On the other hand, in the subacute phase of the infection and in the post-acute COVID syndrome, Nuclear Cardiology seems to shed light on what happens in the cardiovascular system in this phase of the disease.The COVID-19 pandemic has represented a great challenge for health systems, with a significant reduction in non-urgent diagnostic procedures with the aim of reducing the risk of transmission to patients and health personnel. Nuclear Cardiology has not been an exception. In addition to the prioritization of urgent/non-deferrable procedures and general screening, hygiene and distance measures, the main organizations and scientific societies of Nuclear Medicine and Nuclear Cardiology released recommendations and guidelines for safe practice, introducing significant changes in myocardial perfusion SPECT protocols.

Social media use by cardiovascular healthcare professionals in Portugal.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Social media (SoMe) has a flourishing role in cardiovascular (CV) medicine as a facilitator of academic communication not only during conferences and congresses, but also by scientific societies and journals. However, there is no solid data illustrating the use of SoMe by CV healthcare professionals (CVHP) in Portugal. Hence, the main goal of this national cross-sectional survey was to accurately characterize SoMe use by Portuguese CVHPs. METHODS: A 35-item questionnaire was specifically developed for this study, approved by the Digital Health Study Group of the Portuguese Society of Cardiology (SPC), and sent, by e-mail, to the mailing list of the SPC (including 1293 potential recipients). RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: There were 206 valid answers. Fifty-two percent of respondents were female and 58% were younger than 44 years of age with almost two out of three participants being physicians. Ninety-two percent of the survey participants reported that they are currently using SoMe; LinkedIn was the most common platform used for professional purposes. Sixty-four percent believed SoMe had had a positive impact on their clinical practice; 77% and 49% had used SoMe for acquiring and sharing information related to COVID-19, respectively. In conclusion, the majority of Portuguese CVHPs that participated in this survey are actively using SoMe, with a greater participation of those <45 years of age; its clinical impact is positive, with a leading role in the dissemination of evidence during the COVID pandemic.

Innovations in Cardio-oncology Resulting from the COVID-19 Pandemic.

OPINION STATEMENT: The COVID pandemic has transformed our approach to patient care, research, and training in cardio-oncology. While the early phases of the COVID pandemic were exceptionally frightening, we now can reflect on the innovative changes that brought more effective and patient-centered care to our doorsteps: expansion of telemedicine, integration of digital health, wider adoption of cardiac biomarkers, consolidation, and coordination of cardio-oncology testing. Normally, it takes years for health care systems to adopt new technology or modify patient care pathways; however, COVID pushed healthcare providers and the health systems to change at warp speed. All of these innovations have improved our efficacy and provided a more "patient-centered" approach for our cardio-oncology patients. The changes we have made in cardio-oncology will likely remain well beyond the pandemic and continue to grow improving the cardiovascular care of oncology patients.

Azithromycin in COVID‑19 Patients: Pharmacological Mechanism, Clinical Evidence and Prescribing Guidelines: An International Journal of Medical Toxicology and Drug Experience

The global COVID-19 pandemic has led to a race to find medications that can improve the prognosis of the disease. Azithromycin, in association with hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine, has been proposed as one such medication. The aim of this review is to describe the pharmacological mechanism, clinical evidence and prescribing guidelines concerning azithromycin in COVID-19 patients. There is weak evidence on the antiviral and immunomodulating effects of azithromycin, which in addition is not based on results from COVID-19 patients specifically. Therefore, this antibacterial should be considered only as empirical treatment of community-acquired pneumonia (CAP), although not all current treatment guidelines are in agreement. After the initial expectations raised by a small trial, more recent evidence has raised serious safety concerns on the use of hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine with azithromycin to treat COVID-19 patients, as all these drugs have arrhythmogenic potential. The World Health Organization has not made recommendations suggesting the use of azithromycin with hydroxychloroquine or chloroquine as treatment for COVID-19, but some national organisations have taken a different position, recommending this as first-line treatment. Several scientific societies, including the American College of Cardiology, have cautioned about the risks of this treatment in view of the lack of evidence concerning its benefits.

Design and implementation of online patient-facing experiences for an integrated pharmacy programme

Objectives: This report describes the design and ongoing implementation of online patient-facing experiences within an undergraduate pharmacy programme, redesigned from classroom activities due to the SARS CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic. Method(s): Two patient-facing experiences were pre-recorded for sharing with students online in the academic year 2020-21. Live webinars with the patients will accommodate questions and answers. Aligned case-based workshops have been redesigned from in-class activities to online workshops. Stufflebeam's CIPP model of evaluation has been employed as an overall framework of evaluation. Roddy's 'four pillars' for student success in online teaching were used to evaluate the online component. The perspectives of two participating patients regarding the online experience were obtained through semi-structured telephone interviews using suggested discussion themes. Result(s): Classroom-based patient-facing experiences in both cardiology and diabetes have been redesigned for an online format. Potential problems and resolutions were identified against the 'four pillars' to support students. Evaluation of patients' perspectives highlighted their motivations for participation and the importance patients place on pharmacists' communication skills. Student perceptions of all components will be evaluated through anonymous online surveys upon roll-out. Conclusion(s): The COVID-19 pandemic has necessitated pedagogical modifications. The educational benefits of patient-facing experiences can continue through online activities, while protecting vulnerable groups. Copyright © 2020 FIP.

Management of patients with hypertension, coronary heart disease and chronic heart failure during the COVID-19 pandemic in the primary care setting

On December 1, 2021, a meeting of the Council of experts on the treatment of hypertension, coronary heart disease, and chronic heart failure during the COVID-19 pandemic was held remotely to adjust and adapt current approaches to outpatient treatment of the above pathologies under the current epidemiological situation. The meeting was attended by leading Russian specialists from federal medical research centers of cardiology and therapy. Copyright © 2022 All-Russian Public Organization Antihypertensive League. All rights reserved.

Continuous Heartbeat Prediction Using a Face Recognition Algorithm

Health providers use the ECG machine to get information about the heart. This information plays a significant role since it tells them about the status of the heart. The ECG machine presents this information in a waveform. During the Covid-19 pandemic, all governments have placed numerous rules and policies to protect people from the virus and from spreading it. One of the rules and policies is to prevent touching surfaces in public places. However, in health care centers, touching surfaces can't be avoided completely since there is a need to touch them or place some wires on the human body such as placing wires to use the ECG machine. In Saudi Arabia, the government has placed a policy in all its buildings, public places, and the private sector to measure the temperature at the entrance. Due to this situation, the idea has come into mind to have a touchless method to measure the heartbeat rate. In this paper, proposing a feasible and reliable method to estimate a continuous heartbeat rate is presented. It uses a face recognition approach to predict the heart pulse continuously in real-time according to colors intensity measurement. Using a segmentation algorithm is involved since the approach takes its input from a video or an image. Several experiments have been conducted on volunteers to verify the obtained results and measure their relative errors. Consequently, the errors are less than 7% which is quite acceptable. At the end of this article, a comparative assessment is performed between the presented approach and some works from literature. This assessment is conducted based on the methodologies being utilized and applied and Mean Absolute Error (MAE). Furthermore, it shows whether those methods require physical contact or not. The obtained results indicate that the implemented system herein outperforms other state-of-the-art methods.