Impact of age and comorbid heart failure on the utility of smart voice-assistant devices.

Aims: The accuracy of voice-assisted technologies, such as Amazon Alexa, to collect data in patients who are older or have heart failure (HF) is unknown. The aim of this study is to analyse the impact of increasing age and comorbid HF, when compared with younger participants and caregivers, and how these different subgroups classify their experience using a voice-assistant device, for screening purposes.

Methods and results: Subgroup analysis (HF vs. caregivers and younger vs. older participants) of the VOICE-COVID-II trial, a randomized controlled study where participants were assigned with subsequent crossover to receive a SARS-CoV2 screening questionnaire by Amazon Alexa or a healthcare personnel. Overall concordance between the two methods was compared using unweighted kappa scores and percentage of agreement. From the 52 participants included, the median age was 51 (34-65) years and 21 (40%) were HF patients. The HF subgroup showed a significantly lower percentage of agreement compared with caregivers (95% vs. 99%, P = 0.03), and both the HF and older subgroups tended to have lower unweighted kappa scores than their counterparts. In a post-screening survey, both the HF and older subgroups were less acquainted and found the voice-assistant device more difficult to use compared with caregivers and younger individuals.

Conclusion: This subgroup analysis highlights important differences in the performance of a voice-assistant-based technology in an older and comorbid HF population. Younger individuals and caregivers, serving as facilitators, have the potential to bridge the gap and enhance the integration of these technologies into clinical practice.

Study registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04508972.