Loop recorder & cardiac monitoring in Houston

A loop recorder is a small monitor, about the size of a USB stick, placed just under the skin of the upper-left chest. It records your heart rhythm continuously for up to three years and transmits wirelessly to the office. It is the right tool when symptoms happen monthly, quarterly, or rarely, beyond what a Holter or patch monitor can capture.

The implant is a roughly 10-minute office procedure under local anesthesia. Dr. Colombowala makes a small incision on the upper-left chest, positions the device under the skin, and closes the incision with absorbable sutures. There are no activity restrictions other than keeping the site dry for a few days.

A loop recorder is used for unexplained fainting after a normal initial workup, suspected paroxysmal AFib in a patient who has had a stroke of unknown cause, infrequent palpitations that a shorter monitor missed, rhythm surveillance after an ablation, and monitoring in some inherited arrhythmia syndromes. The common thread is symptoms too infrequent for a short-term monitor.

The device records continuously for up to three years. You go home with a small wireless transmitter that sits on the bedside table and checks in each night, sending anything significant to the office. You can also trigger a recording during symptoms with a handheld activator or a smartphone app on newer devices.

Yes. Once the recorder has answered the clinical question or reaches the end of its battery life, it is removed in a brief office procedure similar to the implant. If a diagnosis that needs treatment is found sooner, the device can be removed at that point.