A Holter monitor electrocardiogram is a dynamic electrocardiogram device, a portable heart monitoring device that can record the information of the heart's electrical conduction system within 24 hours (usually at least two weeks at a time).
The most common use of a Holter is to monitor heart activity (ECG). Its extended recording time allows observation of occasional cardiac arrhythmias, which are difficult to identify with short-term monitoring. If the patient has more transient symptoms, a cardiac event monitor that can be worn for more than one month can be used.
The Holter was developed by Norman Holt and Bill Glasscock, experimental physicists at the Holt Research Laboratories in Helena, Montana, who introduced it in 1949 Started research on radio telemetry. At the suggestion of cardiologist Paul Dudley White, they turned their research to a wearable cardiac monitoring device. The Holter was produced commercially in 1962.
When using a Holter to study the heart, it is done like a standard ECG measurement. A Holter is a recording of the heart's electrical signals through many electrodes connected to the chest. Electrodes are placed over the bone to reduce artifacts caused by muscle movement. The number and position of the electrodes varies depending on the model of the Holter, and most Holters use three to eight electrodes. The electrodes are then connected to a small device on the patient's belt or neck that records information about the heart's electrical conduction system during monitoring hours.
