Abstract
BACKGROUND: Taking advantage of the characteristics of the novel compact external loop recorder (ELR; eMEMO®), which is waterproof and has an automatic arrhythmia detection and monitoring function for up to 14 days, we investigated the usefulness of ELR measurement, especially during bathing. METHODS: We included 294 patients (102 males and 192 females) who presented with palpitations as their main complaint from April 2021 to September 2022, with a mean age of 57.0 ± 17.4 years. The average wearing period of the ELR was 4.5 ± 0.9 days. RESULTS: ELR for longer than 24 h led to the first arrhythmia detection in 170 (21.3%) of the 799 cases of all detected arrhythmias, including 11 with premature atrial contraction, 50 with premature ventricular contraction, 8 with atrial fibrillation, 32 with supraventricular tachycardia, and 21 with sick sinus syndrome. They had low noise contamination during measurement. Arrhythmic events during bathing were observed in 52 patients, effectively detecting arrhythmia during bathing, which was difficult with the usual 24-h Holter electrocardiography (ECG). In addition, the itching and rash of the skin at the electrode attachment over a period of up to 5 days were very mild, indicating the comfort of the waterproof patch-type electrode. CONCLUSIONS: The patch-type ELR (eMEMO®) with waterproof design is capable of continuous recording regardless of restrictions such as bathing or exercise and is useful for detecting stable arrhythmias in patients with palpitations.