Abstract

Sleep apnoea syndrome is frequent in patients with heart failure and associated with a worse prognosis. We evaluated a new device (Auricall) for non-invasive, continuous recording of oxygen saturation (SpO(2)) and heart rate (HR) in patients with heart failure. We studied 20 patients (mean age 48.43+/-14.4 years, NYHA class II-III). All patients were requested to carry the device for at least 36 h and to write a diary during the recording time. Satisfactory recording of SpO(2) and HR was possible to obtain in 18 of 20 patients. Indeed 9 out of 18 patients showed significant periodic changes in SpO(2) during sleep. Therefore, Auricall is a useful tool to non-invasively monitor SpO(2) and HR in patients with heart failure and to detect breathing disorders in these patients.