Improving patients’ and physicians’ adherence to treatment recommendations of cardiovascular disease in primary care - a cross-disciplinary approach

BackgroundPatients´ and physicians´ adherence to treatment recommendations for cardiovascular disease is crucial for improved patient outcomes, but we need powerful interventions to support this.ECG-based heart age is a promising risk predictor for future cardiovascular disease and can contribute to increased adherence to treatment if the risk is communicated to patients.New guidelines for treatment of heart failure are available, but physician’s adherence needs to be improved and prognostic biomarkers need to be studied more closely.Methods and aimsThe project aims to1) identify and communicate risk of future cardiovascular disease to patients with hypertension, by using ECG-based heart age in a randomized controlled trial with 400 patients2) improve diagnostics, treatment, and prognosis for 850 patients with heart failure in primary care using an educational approach with cardiology support in primary care 3) build a biobank for future studies on the prognostic significance of biomarkers in the treatment of heart failure.ImportanceThe project is groundbreaking through a multidisciplinary collaboration between clinical physiology, cardiology, and primary care.

This offers a unique opportunity to study how information about ECG-based heart age can improve adherence to treatment of hypertension and reduce risk of future cardiovascular events, as well as how cooperation between primary care and cardiology can improve diagnostics and treatment of patients with heart failure.