Equipment

• There are several accessories necessary when wearing the Holter device. Typically you will have to carry or place in a carrying pack a recorder, which the doctor will give you. This recorder--also known as a heart-monitoring device-- will have several cords coming out of it, which will be attached to your chest using sticky sensor pads.
  
  

Purpose

• The purpose of the test is to gauge how many irregular heartbeats the patient will experience during a period of time, often 24 hours.
  
  

Wearing the Device

• Wearing the Holter device can be inconvenient, as the pads are sometimes irritating to the skin and are quite painful to pull off after being stuck to your skin for 24 hours. The doctor will tell you to be as active as possible during the study.
  
  

Doctor's Purpose

• Once the recording device is returned to the doctor, he will look at the results. Your doctor may then call you in for an appointment to discuss what was learned.
  
  

Heart Disease

• This test helps identify the daily activities of your heart. Irregular heartbeats may increase or decrease, depending on your activities during the monitoring period.