The Use of Mobile Cardiac Telemetry to Improve Diagnostic Accuracy and Enable More Efficient Patient Care

Abstract

Mobile cardiac telemetry (MCT) is a relatively new technology, first approved in 2002 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which provides continuous realtime outpatient electrocardiographic monitoring for extended periods of time. MCT allows detection of both symptomatic and asymptomatic arrhythmias and has been proven to provide superior diagnostic capability for patients with palpitations, syncope, and pre-syncope. It also allows accurate monitoring of a patient’s rhythm during outpatient drug titration, as well as detection of both symptomatic and asymptomatic atrial fibrillation after cardiac ablation. Since recording of the rhythm is continuous, monitoring of a patient’s heart rate (as well as specific documentation of the initiation and termination of arrhythmias) is possible. This article will focus on how the use of MCT can improve diagnostic accuracy and, when combined with the use of a monitoring service that integrates the patient’s tracings within an electronic medical record, can also improve the efficiency of care given to patients.