Proactive geriatrician input identifies medical diagnoses and geriatric syndromes missed by the surgical teams. Managing these issues has contributed to a reduced length of stay in these patients.

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Sleep disorders impair the quality of life for many individuals, but often go undiagnosed and untreated due to the cost and sleep-disturbing aggravation of polysomnography, the clinical sleep test. Simpler sleep monitoring systems that could be used at home may provide useful health information. A 2D grid of force sensors within a mat beneath the thorax of a sleeping subject has been reported to enable monitoring of respiration during sleep. A physical model of a thorax over such a 2D grid of force sensors may enable more tests and perturbations of parameters than could be done using only human subjects. The purpose of this project was to develop and test a physical model of a thorax undergoing volume changes, and measuring the changes in force by a grid of force sensors under the model. A prototype system was developed. Early testing shows promise for being able to monitor the changes in force as volume of the model changes. More development and testing are required toward development of improved algorithms and systems for sleep monitoring mats.

Background Sudden cardiac death (SCD) post‐heart transplantation affects 8%–35% of patients; however, the risk profile remains to be completely elucidated. While pre‐transplant ICDs are typically removed during transplantation, no information exists to suggest if this pre‐transplant risk stratification is also associated with post‐transplant outcomes. The objective of this study was to assess the impact of pre‐transplant ICD status on long‐term prognosis post‐heart transplant. Methods The United Network for Organ Sharing registry was queried for all adult heart transplant recipients from 2010 to 2018. Patients were categorized as with versus without ICD prior to heart transplantation. Survival was compared using Kaplan‐Meier analysis. Proportional hazards regression analysis assessed the impact of ICDs adjusting for clinical and demographic covariates. Results Of 19 026 patients included, 78.6% (n = 14 960) had received an ICD at time of registration. Patients with an ICD were older [54.9 (±11.6) years vs. 48.6 (±15.3) years, p < .001], less likely to be female [25.7% (n = 3842) vs. 31.2% (n = 1269), p < .001], and more commonly diabetic [29.3% (n = 4376) vs 23.5% (n = 954), p < .001]. Kaplan‐Meier analysis showed no difference in unadjusted survival trajectory by ICD status (chi‐square = .48, p = .49). Survival was unrelated to ICD status in the multivariable model (HR = .98; 95% CI .90–1.07). Conclusions Patients receiving an ICD pre‐transplant had a higher prevalence of risk factors for SCD than non‐ICD patients, yet ICD status prior to heart transplantation was not associated with a change in long‐term prognosis post‐heart transplantation.

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