The Use of Radiotelemetry after Discharge from the Coronary Care Unit

Forty-six of 110 consecutive admissions to the coronary care unit (CCU) were monitored by telemetry after discharge from the unit. One of three patients with sudden cardiac death was resuscitated successfully and four patients developed atrial fibrillation which resulted in investigation by echocardiography and treatment with anticoagulants. Significant ventricular ectopic activity was detected in four other patients. Arbitrary selection of patients resulted in those with complicated courses in the CCU being more likely to be monitored by telemetry after transfer to the ward than those which were uncomplicated. There were no cases of sudden cardiac death in patients who did not have telemetry. The cost of telemetry was £2,775 per system. All 19 districts in the North-West region of the UK responded to a questionnaire. Five of the 19 used telemetry but only two of these used the technique routinely after discharge from the CCU whereas four used radiotelemetry to monitor patients on the ward when coronary care beds were unavailable. Eight districts wanted telemetry but needed funds. We conclude that radiotelemetry is an inexpensive way to detect serious arrhythmias in patients transferred from the CCU to the general ward. Monitored from the CCU, cardiac arrest can be immediately detected and treated by experienced staff. Asymptomatic atrial fibrillation leads to prompt investigation by echocardiography and possible treatment with anticoagulants. The importance of noticing major ventricular ectopic activity is likely to increase with the possibility of selecting patients with a high risk of life-endangering arrhythmias so that antiarrhythmic drugs or techniques such as automatic defibrillators can be used appropriately. The ability to continue monitoring on the general ward allows more rapid turnover of the CCU beds which is increasingly important as extra demand is created by the widespread use of thrombolysis.