For what indications does Medicare reimburse for a Cardiovascular/Exercise Stress Test?

The indications are as follows:

• To determine the location, presence and severity of exercise induced myocardial ischemia
• Evaluate potential for rhythm disturbances
• Evaluate hemodynamic responses to activity
• Evaluate the effect of medical or interventional therapy
• Prescribe appropriate activity guidelines
• Pre-operative evaluation of patients at high risk for coronary artery disease who are scheduled to undergo general anesthesia and/or undergo a surgical procedure which places them at risk for a sudden cardiac event.
• Establish prognosis and management decisions following an uncomplicated myocardial infarction.
• Determine whether underlying coronary artery disease is the etiology of unexplained left ventricular dysfunction
• Assess for recurrent ischemia in patients with prior percutaneious intervention who are at increased risk for restenosis.

What is the amount of reimbursement?

The rates for reimbursement can vary by geographical region, insurance company policies, and patient conditions. It is important that you contact your Medicare contractor to verify reimbursement amounts for your region.

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What is included when I purchase a Vet20 BP system?

The system includes the BP monitor, patient hose, 6 BP cuffs (sizes #1 to #6), a product manual and 4 AA batteries.

How do I choose the correct cuff size?

Wrap the cuff around the patient’s limb and make sure the index line falls within the range marker. If two different cuff sizes fit the patient, choose the larger size.

How do I keep the cuff from slipping down the limb or coming off?

Attach the cuff as tight as possible. Extra attention will be needed on species with dense or thick fur. If the cuff will not stay attached, check the Velcro for fur and remove if possible.

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Why Use Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring?

Diagnosing and treating hypertension is serious business, and as research shows, ABPM is far superior to other testing available to clinicians. ABPM provides valuable diagnostic information that in-clinic and home blood pressure monitoring systems are incapable of measuring including:

• BP variability and a more accurate estimation of true blood pressure

• Overnight changes in blood pressure (dipper status)

• Morning surges in blood press

In general, ABPM is recognized in the medical community as a valuable tool for supporting the management of appropriate pharmacologic treatment as well as the assessment of:

• "White coat” hypertension, when elevated blood pressure measurements are recorded in the physican’s office environment while blood pressure readings outside the physician’s office are within a normal range.

• Resistant hypertension, when multiple anti-hypertensive medications fail to adequately control high blood pressure.

• Masked hypertension, when in-office measurements fall within an acceptable range, but the mean blood pressure is actually above the acceptable range.

• Hypotensive symptoms with hypertensive medications.

The diagnostic test begins with fitting a patient with a portable monitor and BP cuff. The patient leaves and returns the next day. Over this period of time, the monitor takes measurements periodically as programmed by the clinician, generally each 15-30 minutes during awake hours and 30-45 minutes during sleeping hours.

Utilizing our ABP monitor - Oscar 2 or Oscar 2 with SphygmoCor Inside - the patient returns and these measurements are transferred to a computer where they can be easily viewed and documented in a report using the AccuWin Pro^™ software. You are then able to see the full picture when it comes to assessing blood pressure and diagnosing hypertension in your patient. The results of ABP monitoring provide the most comprehensive representation of a patient’s complete blood pressure profile.

When the complete picture is what you need, we are here to provide you with just that. Our ABPM devices don’t miss a step – so you won’t either.

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Why is it important to use the correct size cuff on my patients?

SunTech Medical Cuffs are designed to meet the AAMI (Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation) clinical standards for blood pressure cuffs. These standards were devised in order to ensure adequate pressure on the artery of the upper arm, which is necessary to produce an accurate blood pressure measurement. If a cuff is used on an arm larger than the specified range, the resulting reading will be falsely high. If a cuff is used on an arm that is smaller than the specified range, the resulting reading will be falsely low.

Do you offer private labeling?

For more information on corporate labeling, please contact SunTech by email or by phone:

• US Toll Free: 1.800.421.8626
• Main Line: 01.919.654.2300
• Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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