Heart disease is a serious killer. One in every four deaths is due to heart disease, making it the leading cause of death in the world. In the United States, the cost of treating heart disease exceeds $100 billion annually, and in mid- to lower-income countries, has been estimated to cause a staggering 6.77% drop in a country’s GDP.
A Chicago startup called Benecure hopes to lower this statistic with a solution that tackles heart disease at its start: lifestyle choices. It’s currently raising funds on Indiegogo to develop a mobile app and web community that monitors many of the common behavioral risk factors found in people with heart disease and provides personalized guidance on reducing these risk factors. It will also connect other users of the app with each other for networking, sharing, and motivation.
In the long run, Benecure aims to be more than just another motivational tool. With some of the funds it hopes to raise on Indiegogo, the company plans on launching a pilot study in a few of Chicagoland’s free community clinics that will test the feasibility of its prototype chest strap that can detect a cardiac event. They hope that in the long-run, patients in all financial situations will be able to receive preventative treatment of heart disease through Benecure’s inexpensive technology, and we’ll see reduced costs from a healthier global population.
More information: Benecure website…
Indiegogo campaign: Benecure…
