Questions about Cardionet 30 day event monitor

[ConcernedFainter]

So, I got my 30 day event monitor yesterday . It’s Cardionet Dual Afib.  I’m liking it so far and think it’s pretty neat.  You guys were right! This is not bad at all :) For those who have used something like this, can you please tell me how often should I press the record button? I got this to record my Presyncope-Syncope episodes mainly ( no guarantees it’s going to happen in the next 30 days as I don’t get these frequently). So far I have  pressed it a few times when I felt tachycardia/palpitations. My question is I get dizzy/foggy, feel short of breath and get chest pain too. I’m not sure if it’s cardiac related or if it’s due to Fibromyalgia that I was diagnosed with. So Should I record these too? I feel dizzy/foggy almost constantly some days within a few hrs of waking up, so not sure what to do?
Also, when I recorded a few tachy/palps yesterday and called to transfer the recordings, the representative said to me.. So, you were  walking when  you recorded these? and I said .. No, I was at home..Standing. So, I think I might actually have tachycardia and not imagining it after all! But how much is too much ? The doctor does want to know if I have IST/ sinus tachycardia....but it does record on it's own, so they should be able to see if I have Tachycardia/ Arrythmia or not. Right?

[anon517]

I finished wearing mine about a month ago.  Did anybody else get some weird rhythms that have got to be artifact but look kind of like giant boxes with their cardionet dual afib monitor?  This apparently was a frequent occurrence on mine and even autotriggered it at times but it looks like something that can't possibly be real so I'm guessing its a defect with the monitor or some sort of artifact.

[ConcernedFainter]

I just felt some mild palpitations, no other symptoms. The last 2-3 times when I fainted, I remember having palpitations that were definitely more severe than this and had felt a general sense of uneasiness too. I have made note of the time and day and will ask the EP what was captured when I see him next month. Thanks Michelle!:)

[MichelleP_3811]

I would say you caught some sort of ectopic beat pattern.  Did you have some of the more troubling symptoms with it or just a flip flopping feeling?  Unfortunately with an irregular beat the rate is a bit tricky because it isn't necessarily a true rate with extra beats and pauses thrown in.  That said, you could have had a short run of something.  The fact that the tech wasn't overly concerned means that whatever it was wasn't in a dangerous pattern but it was enough to show that something occurred.  It is progress at least.  If you feel these types of feelings with this episode like you do when you sense you are going to pass out it could have been a smaller version of what is causing you trouble or it could be some other issue.  For me I had svt as the major issue where my heart rate would shoot up to 240 or so but I also had ectopic beats pacs and pvcs that actually triggered the svt but they are 2 different conditions.  So it is possible what was caught is your issue or just a contributor to your issue.  When the doctor gets back to you with the results if he doesn't explain it then make sure you take note of the date and ask specifically about this event.

[ConcernedFainter]

Day 15 of the event Monitor today. In the morning, I felt some mild palpitations ( nothing like the moderate-severe palps I feel, when I faint). Checked my heart rate on the Azumio HR app I have on my I-phone, it showed 112, then 172 and after a lot of flip-flopping, settled at 122. It was also showing an irregular pattern ( it has a Real-time PPG (EKG-like graph)). I pressed the record button. I just transferred the recording by phone and the Rep said " Nothing urgent but your doctor will see this tomorrow. You were able to capture whatever you were trying to record very well"
Does anyone know what this means? Do you think something significant was finally caught  because no one  talked like this before when I transferred the recordings in the last 2 weeks? My next appointment with my EP Cardiologist isn't until 1st week of October. Thanks!

[ConcernedFainter]

Thanks so much everyone! Great advice :) Mine records upto 6 events ( auto-trigerred + self-recordings). No auto recordings so far... customer service said that when it auto-records, I will hear a beep..followed by the ringer-tone. I get dizzy and chest pain a lot. So, that does mean I would be recording all day Lol! Today I did a recording each for palps,chest pain and dizziness and made note of the time and date and what I was feeling by writing it down. Let's see how it goes. Never thought I would say this... but can't wait to faint or atleast have one pres-syncope soon!

[MichelleP_3811]

I would say if you have recorded the dizziness and foggy symptoms once and they are a constant for you then I wouldn't bother recording it otherwise you would be recording all day long though it is up to you.  I would keep a diary though.  The protocol I would use would be if I feel an episode of something that starts and stops I would record it but if it is just a general overall feeling that I feel all day then I would just make a note of that in a diary stating on this day I felt like this all day long and give that to the doctor.  Best of luck.  I do hope they can figure it out with this testing.  Keep us posted.

[Mommy2TnL]

I agree.  Press the button when you feel symptoms.  Let the cardiologist decipher the results.  I had a 30 day monitor about 6 months ago.  I had enough information after a little over a day, so they called me and told me to turn it back in.  I currently have another 30 day monitor on to see how I'm reacting to the medication.  I get about 2 or 3 auto recordings a day and if I'm feeling symptoms I'll hit record as well.  So I've had it on for maybe a week now and the EP probably has around 40 recordings from me.  It's their job to figure it out, it's our job to gather as much information as possible for them to do it.  Good luck to you!

[spade22]

I used a cariodnet 30 day monitor earlier in the year,  but I'm not sure what model it was.  With mine, it would save up to 5 events.

The way these things are designed to work is you record when you feel symptoms.  Dizziness, chest pain, palpitations,, etc are events you should record.  Also, if you feel anything you think is cardiac related, be sure to record and don't assume the auto record will kick in - I believe the auto record is programed to capture certain events with certain thresholds so may not trigger on its own if it doesn't recognize an event as abnormal. Another thing to note is that the monitor often auto triggers when events aren't taking place - caused me some stress as the thing would record numerous times a day but it was just noise.

Hope that helps a little.