TZ Medical, Cinterion announce Aera-CT mHealth heart arrhythmia monitoring device

Cinterion, the global leader in cellular machine-to-machine (M2M) communication modules and a Gemalto (Euronext NL 0000400653 GTO) company, and TZ Medical, a leading manufacturer of critical-care medical products, today announced Aera-CT™, a lightweight and cost effective mHealth heart arrhythmia monitoring device. Equipped with the Cinterion MC75i module, the Aera-CT is expected to be commercially available in North America in Q3, 2011 followed by rolling launches throughout the world.

The Cinterion-enabled Aera-CT improves the ability to rapidly detect heart arrhythmias during normal day-to-day activities and over long periods of time. Designed for ease-of-use and comfort, the discreet device is placed on the patient with as few as three electrodes.

Cinterion's module enables secure and reliable communication of detailed diagnostic data via cellular networks and the Internet, providing patients and their physicians with 24/7 monitoring and improved detection and visibility of arrhythmia events. Authorized caregivers can securely view patient data at anytime, from anywhere in the world to determine treatment approaches.

"M2M-enabled medical devices are revolutionizing the way healthcare is delivered and driving impressive growth in the mHealth sector," said Peter Fowler, Cinterion's regional president for the Americas. "Together, TZ Medical and Cinterion are developing cutting-edge M2M heart monitoring technology to help reduce hospital stays and healthcare costs, while improving patient care and ensuring patients' data privacy is protected - it's a win-win business case with strong and visible social benefits."

"We rely on Cinterion-Gemalto, with their 10 years of mHealth experience, for intelligent engineering as well as highly secure and reliable technology to enable Aera-CT's 24/7 patient support," said Bob Doerr, TZ Medical project manager. "Today, there are around four million people in the US alone that need care for recurring arrhythmias and the medical community requires best-in-class technology for detection and monitoring. Aera-CT is poised to play a critical role in addressing that need."