DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEM FOR TREATMENT OF MITRAL VALVE DISEASE

THIS APPLICATION PROPOSES A COMPUTER BASED INFORMATION SERVICE TO PROVIDE DECISION SUPPORT TO PHYSICIANS AND PATIENTS IN TREATMENT SELECTION IN MITRAL VALVE DISEASE. STUDIES INDICATE SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN MORBIDITY AND MORTALITY RATES BETWEEN MITRAL VALVE RECONSTRUCTION AND MITRAL VALVE REPLACEMENT. THUS, LARGE NUMBERS OF COMPLEX CLINICAL AND NONCLINICAL FACTORS AFFECT AND ARE AFFECTED BY THE TREATMENT SELECTED. THE TECHNOLOGY PROPOSED USES A METHODOLOGY FOR SYSTEMATICALLY ASSESSING THESE FACTORS AGAINST THE POTENTIAL CONSEQUENCES ASSOCIATED WITH EACH POSSIBLE TREATMENT. THE METHODOLOGY IS TO BE TRANSFORMED INTO A COMPUTER PROGRAM CAPABLE OF ANALYZING A LARGE VARIETY OF DATA. THE PROGRAM WILL ANALYZE THEIMPACT ON THE PATIENT OF EARLY SURGERY FOR MITRAL VALVE RECONSTRUCTION VERSUS DEFERRED SURGERY FOR MITRAL VALVE REPLACEMENT. THIS TECHNOLOGY, WITH APPROPRIATE MODIFICATIONS, CAN BE USED FOR OTHER MEDICAL CONDITIONS FOR WHICH THERE IS A CHOICE OF TREATMENTS. BY GIVING PHYSICIANS AND THEIR PATIENTS EASY ACCESS TO THESE PROGRAMS, THROUGH A COMPUTER-BASED INFORMATION SERVICE, LARGE NUMBERS OF PATIENTS MAY BE SERVED REGARDLESS OF THEIR LOCATION. IN THEINSTANCE OF MITRAL VALVE DISEASE, THE POTENTIAL USER GROUP IS THE PRE-OPERATIONAL POPULATION OF APPROXIMATELY 400,000 PER YEAR. WITH ADVANCED KNOWLEDGE ABOUT THE IMPACT OF TREATMENTS ON EACH PATIENT, A BETTER MATCH OF PATIENTS WITH TREATMENT CAN OCCUR RESULTING IN THE MORE EFFECTIVE USE OF HEALTH CARE RESOURCES.