Event Monitoring

A physician may choose to order an event monitor if your symptoms, such as light-headedness, fainting spell, chest pain or shortness of breath, occur less often.  Event recorders are worn over a period of 30 days to allow the monitor to record you heart rhythm when you are having symptoms, or an "event".

Like a holter monitor, an event monitor also uses a recording device to monitor your heart rhythm when you are having symptoms, or an "event".  Unlike the holter monitor, it does not continuously monitor your heart over a 24-hour period.  When you feel a symptom such as dizziness, palpitations, fainting spell, you activate the device to record the event.  After recording the event, you telephone the monitoring station, where a record is made of your event. Or, if you cannot get to a phone, you can save the information in memory, which can later be sent to a monitoring station.  Your event stays recorded on the event monitor until it is transmitted to a monitoring station.

Event monitoring determines whether symptoms such as dizziness, palpitations, fainting spells, or chest pain are caused by rhythm disturbances.