Feasibility of a Comprehensive Home Monitoring Program for Sarcoidosis

Abstract

Sarcoidosis is a chronic, heterogeneous disease which most commonly affects the lungs. Currently, evidence-based and individually tailored treatment options in sarcoidosis are lacking. We aimed to evaluate patient experiences with a home monitoring program for sarcoidosis and assess whether home monitoring is a feasible tool to enhance personalized treatment. Outpatients with pulmonary sarcoidosis tested the home monitoring program "Sarconline" for one month. This is a secured personal platform which consists of online patient-reported outcomes, real-time wireless home spirometry, an activity tracker, an information library, and an eContact option. Patients wore an activity tracker, performed daily home spirometry, and completed patient-reported outcomes at baseline and after one month. Patient experiences were evaluated during a phone interview. Ten patients were included in the study. Experiences with the home monitoring program were positive; 90% of patients considered the application easy to use, none of the patients found daily measurements burdensome, and all patients wished to continue the home monitoring program after the study. Mean adherence to daily spirometry and activity tracking was, respectively, 94.6% and 91.3%. In conclusion, a comprehensive home monitoring program for sarcoidosis is feasible and can be used in future research and clinical practice.