Solar-powered monitor could help cut rates of heart disease in poor countries

A SOLAR-POWERED device to detect high blood pressure, or hypertension, could help address cardiovascular disease in low-income countries, according to a paper published online yesterday in Hypertension: Journal of the American Heart Association.

“Hypertension leads to stroke and heart attack as the major cause of death around the world,” said study co-author Prof Eoin O’Brien from the Conway Institute of Biomolecular and Biomedical Research at University College Dublin.

The new research looked at field tests of a solar-powered blood-pressure monitor in Uganda and Zambia, where the incidence of hypertension is rising dramatically, he said.

“At present, the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension in low-resource countries is generally deplorable,” Prof O’Brien said. “A major problem is failure to identify hypertension due to the unavailability of suitable blood-pressure measurement devices. The only way to diagnose high blood pressure is by measuring it; treatment cannot begin without a diagnosis.”

The research found that the solar-powered blood-pressure measurement device, which costs about €25, gave results 94 per cent in agreement with the standard blood-pressure testing method for systolic blood pressure, which is the blood pressure when the heart contracts.

“Systolic blood pressure is the blood-pressure reading on which most decisions are made,” said Prof O’Brien.

The solar-powered device was developed through engagement between a WHO committee and blood-pressure monitor manufacturers. One manufacturer’s device met the criteria set out, and the six-month field trials, which involved more than 700 patients, examined it for factors such as performance and ease of use.

The device is “accurate, inexpensive, easy to use and robust”, according to Prof O’Brien. “It can be run on batteries, but it can also be left in the sunlight to charge, making it ideal for rural areas and use out in the bush.”

The study received funding from WHO and manufacturers of blood-pressure monitoring devices.