Cardiac Arrhythmia Unit
The Cardiac Institute arrhythmia unit will devote its energies to assuring the well-being of those who suffer from cardiac arrhythmia and have implanted pacemakers and those who report arrhythmia symptoms. Cardiac arrhythmia is a term for a large group of conditions in which there is abnormal electrical activity in the heart. The heart beat may be too fast or too slow, and may be regular or irregular.
Some arrhythmias are life-threatening medical emergencies that can result in cardiac arrest and sudden death. Others cause aggravating symptoms such as an abnormal awareness of heart beat or may be merely annoying. Others may not be associated with any symptoms at all, but have a pre-dispositional family history of sudden death or life threatening arrhythmia.
Pacemaker maintenance
Pacemakers are used to correct abnormal rhythms of the heart. Before implantation the pacemaker’s internal computer is programmed to meet the patient’s cardiac needs. The programming can be repeated as often as necessary if the patient’s underlying heart rhythm problem changes. Periodic pacemaker checks are necessary to measure the function of the device and the amount of energy left in the battery. The scheduled maintenance for pacemakers generally consists of periodic telephone follow-up (every month or two) and usually yearly visits to the AMC doctor’s office.
Holter Monitoring
When an AMC physician requires more information about a suspected abnormal cardiac rhythm for patients having more transient symptoms, he may request that a Holter monitor be connected to the patient. A Holter monitor is a portable electrocardiogram (EKG) that monitors the electrical activity of an ambulatory patient’s heart while the person goes about daily activities. It supplies a continuous recording of a patient's ECG for 24 hours (sometimes longer for low frequency abnormalities). Electrodes (small conducting patches) are stuck onto the patient's chest and attached to a small recording monitor. The Holter monitor is carried in a pocket or in a small pouch worn around the neck or waist. The monitor is battery operated. Much like standard electrocardiography, the Holter monitor records electrical signals from the heart via a series of electrodes attached to the chest. Since it is worn during the patient's regular daily activities, it helps the physician correlate symptoms of dizziness, palpitations (a sensation of rapid or irregular heart rhythm) or black outs. Since the recording covers 24 hours, on a continuous basis, Holter monitoring is much more likely to detect an abnormal heart rhythm when compared to the ECG which lasts between one and five minutes.