United States-based medical devices and healthcare company Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) announced on Thursday that it has received approval from US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Assert-IQ Insertable Cardiac Monitor, a product that provides physicians with a new option for diagnostic assessment and long-term monitoring of people experiencing irregular heartbeats.

This clearance builds on Abbott's portfolio of connected health devices, intended to help doctors manage and treat their patients remotely.

Using Bluetooth technology, Abbott's Assert-IQ ICM is designed to remain connected to a transmitter – usually the person's own cell phone – where it checks heart rhythms every 20 seconds, transmitting results in real-time to the clinic's portal. Additionally, some models of the Assert-IQ ICM family can be remotely programmed allowing the clinician to adjust the settings of the connected device, optimise performance and limit unnecessary alerts or transmissions – all without requiring the patient to visit the clinic.

Abbott said that the Assert-IQ ICM also offers advanced diagnostic capabilities to provide physicians with more clinically relevant information about the cardiovascular health of the patient, allowing care providers to make clinical decisions faster.