Phoning it In

A New Jersey cardiology practice is using wireless technology to achieve a national goal: shorten door-to-balloon time in heart attack patients.

The cardiology department at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) Medical School in Newark has teamed with emergency personnel to use a wireless network that transmits electrocardiograms (ECGs) to mobile phones with PC (personal computer) functionality.

"If the door-to-balloon time is shortened for heart attack patients, there's a decrease in death and an improvement in cardiac function," said Marc Klapholz, MD, director of UMDNJ's cardiology division. Klapholz spearheaded the wireless ECG project that went live last June.

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