If you or someone you love has chronic heart problems, like the kind that took my grandfather, then you might well be interested to hear about the results of the three month test that’s currently in its second month for a kind of portable heart monitor that can send data back to medical professionals automatically on a regular basis.

In a partnership with Gen-i and Alcatel-Lucent, the gear in question uses a Bluetooth system (ah, Bluetooth–what can’t you do?) to, with the press of a button on the control unit, take blood pressure and weight readings from an electronic scale at the patients’ houses and sends them to hospital staff.

The technology in question is easily portable, allowing patients to continue living fairly normal lives while getting treatment, and allows medical professionals to free up hospital rooms and also keep themselves from getting tied down to their own offices.  In fact, the guy you see above is one of the current test subjects, and he’s reporting a whole lot of positives from the new technology.

The trial is expected to finish up in December and results released early 2010.

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