Monitoring for Ascites in Cirrhosis Using Patient-Generated Health Data: No Longer a Remote Possibility

Excerpt

Cirrhosis is a chronic condition with a well-documented high symptom burden, morbidity, mortality and costs [1‐3]. Asrani et al. reported that in-hospital mortality from cirrhosis exceeds that from other serious comorbidities such as congestive heart failure or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [1]. Ascites is a particularly common and costly cirrhosis complication that has been the target of several interventions aimed to reduce hospitalization frequency and length by improving timely access to paracentesis and redesigning acute models of care [4, 5]. Though telemedicine and “automated hovering” interventions are particularly promising modalities that can improve access to care and in-between visit monitoring, the evidence base for their clinical effectiveness and optimal implementation is still building for cirrhosis [6, 7]. …