HF is associated with frequent and lengthy hospitalisations. These hospitalisations are usually as a result of congestion. The signs of congestion that can be recognised by physicians or health care professionals such as lung crackles or worsening of peripheral oedema are often seen at a late stage before an intervention can be made to prevent overt decompensation and admission to hospital. Recognising changes in excess fluid status either before a patient becomes unwell or during decongestion treatment is highly desirable so that timely treatment can be started or so that treatment can be adjusted based on an individual's response to therapy. The ability to assess patients by applying a single, non-invasive device would potentially provide a useful tool for assessing a patient's congestion levels and allow patients with progressive deterioration to be identified earlier.
Fluid status and congestion can be determined by the CPM wearable device and correlates with invasive measures, non-invasive measures and biochemical markers of congestion and changes in congestion.