Rhythm Monitoring

A heart rhythm monitor is a diagnostic test in which the electrical activity of your heart is recorded in order to identify an irregular heart rhythm, or cardiac arrhythmia, one of the common heart disorders.

 

A holter monitor is a portable ECG recorder worn by patients during normal daily activities and while sleeping. The device is typically worn for 24 hours. Our office will provide the device for patients to use.

Before we send you home, we will place electrodes on your chest. These electrodes are connected with wires to a box about the size of a deck of cards. For your convenience, this can be worn on a belt or shoulder strap.

We ask that you keep a diary while you wear the monitor, detailing your activities and your symptoms, which may include palpitations, rapid heartbeat, dizziness, or light-headedness. Make sure you note the time, and what activities you were doing when your symptoms occurred so that we are able to see the correlation between the two.

The electrical impulses are continuously recorded and stored in the holter monitor. When you return the holter monitor to us, a technician will analyze the recording and look for any rhythm abnormalities. When the full report is available, a doctor will discuss the results with you.

 

Similar to a holter monitor, this device is worn during normal daily activities, including sleeping, but it is worn for a longer period of time to detect arrhythmias that occur less frequently.

Before we send you home, we will place electrodes on your chest. These electrodes are connected with wires to a box about the size of deck of cards. For your convenience, this can be worn on a belt or shoulder strap.

When symptoms arise, you press a button to activate the recorder, prompting the monitor to record the event for the 60 seconds prior to your pushing the button and up to 40 seconds after the arrhythmia is over. Up to three events can be stored on the event monitor.

We will ask you to either send the recordings immediately or transfer them later over a phone line. The technician will provide the recordings for your doctor to review. If the reading indicates an emergency, the technician will instruct you to go to the emergency room.

 

Similar to an event monitor, this device is worn during normal daily activities including sleeping, and is typically worn for 7 to 14 days.

Before we send you home, we will place electrodes on your chest. These electrodes are connected with wires to a box about the size of a deck of cards. For your convenience, this can be worn on a belt or shoulder strap

The continuous telemetry monitor allows continuous heartbeat monitoring as you go about your daily activities. The device registers each heartbeat and sends the information to a live monitor. Certified cardiac technicians, available 24 hours a day, analyze each transmission, respond to events that need immediate attention, and transmit diagnostic reports to your doctor.

Reporting symptoms is easy and convenient, simply use the touch screen on the monitor. The monitor transmits the symptom you entered and your ECG to the monitoring center. Integrated symptom and ECG data can help doctors rule in, or rule out, cardiac causes for symptoms such as palpitations, rapid heartbeat, dizziness, or light-headedness.

 

Often, pacemakers and ICDs are equipped with a special transmitter so that remote monitoring may be done. The pacemakers and ICDs automatically send medical and technical information from your heart from the comfort of your home to your cardiologists who are treating you. This allows your doctor to monitor your condition based on accurate up-to-date clinical information at any time.

In order to send the signals from your ICD or pacemaker, you will need a special transmitting device. This may look like a large mobile phone or may be a box that you will need to plug into your telephone line.

The type of transmitter you receive will depend on which company made your implant. Sending transmission from home remotely to the heart doctor’s office allows the cardiologist to check battery status, detect arrhythmias, provide lead data, confirm delivered therapy, and some can also check on fluid retention and therefore provide early warning signs of heart failure.

Preparing for the monitoring:

• Avoid oily or greasy skin creams and lotions where the monitor is applied. They interfere with the electrode-skin contact.
• Wear a shirt that can be easily removed to place the electrodes on the chest.

 

Pacemaker interrogation is a process for checking on the function of a pacemaker to make sure it is working properly and that the batteries are in good condition.

For this noninvasive procedure, our doctors will wave a wand connected to a computer over your chest. The wand and pacemaker communicate wirelessly, giving the computer access to the data in the pacemaker’s memory and information on the pacemaker’s battery life. The procedure is not painful, although sometimes patients may feel light-headed or strange while the interrogation is happening.

This procedure is quick and will be scheduled as a 10-15 minute outpatient appointment. You do not need to undergo any special preparation for the test. Before the procedure, the doctor will ask you about your general level of health and collect information about any recent cardiac events. When the pacemaker interrogation is over, we will advise you about any programming changes made and the available battery life.

A pacemaker interrogation is recommended after the initial implantation and before any surgical procedure, even if the pacemaker has been recently checked. Electrocautery and other tools used during surgery could potentially interfere with the device, especially if the batteries are low. If we find anything is amiss, we can make necessary changes to your care plan to ensure you remain safe during the procedure.

We will check your pacemaker at regular intervals to identify problems that could lead to its malfunction.

 

A cardiac defibrillator interrogation is a process for checking on the function of an implanted cardiac device to ensure it is working properly and that the batteries are in good condition.

A cardiac defibrillator is a battery-powered device placed under the skin that keeps track of your heart rate. Thin wires connect the device to your heart. If the device detects an abnormal heart rhythm, such as a heart that beats too fast or chaotically, it will deliver an electric shock to restore a normal heartbeat. Cardiac defibrillators help prevent sudden death in patients with known, sustained ventricular tachycardia or fibrillation, and studies have shown that they may have a role in preventing cardiac arrest in high-risk patients who haven’t had but are at risk for life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias.

A cardiac defibrillator interrogation is usually recommended before any surgical procedure, even if it has been recently checked. Electrocautery and other tools used during surgery could potentially interfere with the device, especially if the batteries are low. If we find anything is amiss, we can make necessary changes to your care plan to ensure you remain safe during the procedure.

We will check your defibrillator at regular intervals to identify problems that could lead to its malfunction.