The first participant has already been enrolled. So a project was officially launched, born from the collaboration of many realities: 14 Ircc (the hospitals of excellence of the Italian health network) of the Cardiology Network, about 200 general practitioners of the Co.S consortium and 200 pharmacies associated with Federfarma Lombardia. Is called “CV-Prevital. Primary cardiovascular prevention strategies in the Italian population “and is the first study in Italy to try to scientifically demonstrate, on a very large sample of the population, the effectiveness of a digital system for cardiovascular prevention, that is to say whether it is really possible to improve prevention with a smartphone app. The study was born on the initiative of the Ministry of Health and Parliament, “because – he explains Gianfranco Paratiscientific director of Irccs Auxologico and principal investigator of the study together with Giulio Pompilioscientific director of the Monzino Cardiology Center – the institutions have realized that if cardiovascular diseases are not combated, the health system could collapse within a few years “.
Take prevention by the hand
Tobacco consumption, incorrect eating habits, insufficient physical activity, excessive alcohol consumption, but also psycho-behavioral characteristics and sleep disturbances: 60% of cardiovascular diseases in Europe and Italy can be attributed to these risk factors. Primary prevention allows us to increase the years of “healthy life” and to contain the inconvenience and costs of treatment. But it’s not easy, as all people who try it know. “Prevention is an activity that must last for years and must be practiced consistently – recalls Gianfranco Parati. – And digital medicine can be a very effective tool”. This is why the cornerstone of the CV Prevital Project is an app, specially created and distributed to over 80,000 over 45 participants in the study, who have never undergone a cardio or cerebrovascular event, who have a smartphone. As he explains Damiano Baldassarreprincipal co-researcher of the study, the goal is very ambitious: “to scientifically verify whether this kind of tool is really capable of making people more aware of their cardiovascular health and helping them to become protagonists of their choices in terms of prevention” .
How the application works
The app has been designed to allow remote monitoring, education and management of conventional and emerging cardiovascular risk factors and unhealthy lifestyles, providing advice and guidance, acting as a diary and reminder for the user. (recording blood pressure, heart rate, body mass index calculation, blood sugar). It has a game-based section, to involve the study participants more. “The recruitment of the 80,000 participants will be completed within 18 months. And then, within a couple of years, we expect to see how and if the project’s digital technologies can improve people’s cardiovascular risk conditions. everything, because CV-Prevital is a scientific project. But we hope to find solutions that then translate into a proposal for improvement “, explains Parati.
The importance of working together
None of the Institutes participating in the project would have been able on its own to reach such a high number of participants, which is essential to guarantee the statistical weight necessary for the scientific nature of the study. The data and organizational infrastructure created between the various Irccs of the Cardiology Network also indicates the way for future projects. Once the project is concluded, it will allow the IRCCs to interact directly with general practitioners and local pharmacies for new studies. An important added value, which explains the ten million euro funding allocated by the Ministry of Health. According to the president of the Health Consortium Co.S Antonio Di Malta CV-Prevital could represent a reorganization factor for prevention projects and telemedicine activities, with a strong motivation also for the doctors themselves.