Holter monitor

[Dickyticker26]

I have an appointment at Kingston Hospital on Christmas Eve for a 24 hour monitor to be fitted

My triple bypass was on 28 August and the breastbone is still tender and sensitive at times even with just a T shirt and I have to resort to pillow-hugging and pain-killers

The monitors shown on internet images look quite formidable and I rather doubt whether in a month's time I would be able to tolerate wearing one

I have had a lot of tests and procedures-ECG (many), tilt test, stress (pedalling) test, vein scan, angiogram, blood tests, height and weight, myocardial perfusion scan, echo cardiogram (twice) and, presumably, cardioversion as the doctors at St Thomas' said that they restored my heart to sinus rhythm whilst they were at it

But never the monitor although there was some talk of it in 2016 when my irregular heart beat was first picked up

My recovery seems to be going well, the surgical wounds are well-healed, I am doing most of the things I was doing before the operation apart from gardening, and working up to walking 20 miles a week again My heart beat rate is usually within 60-90 on the fitbit-well down from 120 with SVT

It is getting a bit like the Grenfell Towers situation where common sense tells you to resist official advice and trust your instinct

My feeling is that I should cancel the appointment or ask for a fresh (later) one

I have never talked to anyone who has had a holter monitor and would welcome any responses or suggestions-the nurse at St Thomas' seems to think that it may not now be necessary

[Gjkas]

Hi,

I think if I were you I'd postpone having the Holter Monitor on for over the Christmas Period,especially if your Breastbone is still very tender.

Because don't forget that you have to sleep with it still strapped to you..

Let your Breastbone heal and wait until it is not so sensitive. Then go and enjoy your CHRISTMAS.

The monitor has a few wires attached to it obviously, but it doesn't cause any trouble or anything like that. It didn't with me when I had it fitted. But then my Breastbone wasn't tender or anything like that. I really would wait until after the Christmas. 🎅. Gjkas

[Dickyticker26 in reply to Gjkas]

Thanks for responding

Sounds like good advice!

[Gjkas in reply to Dickyticker26]

You're welcome.

Go enjoy your Christmas.

Then you'll be more comfortable and relaxed for when you have to have your monitor fitted.

TAKE CARE. and GOOD LUCK. 🤗

[Dickyticker26 in reply to Gjkas]

I shall and will let you know how it all works out

[Gjkas in reply to Dickyticker26]

Okay you're on. Don't forget to let me know how you get on.

🤞Fingers crossed, youll be okay.

😚. NIGHT NIGHT .Gjkas x

[Platypus6]

Hi Dickyticker26 I have just had a 24 hour Holter, it’s not the most comfortable thing to wear to bed, it needs to be clipped to a top or waist band, you also have the wires which are attached to it and to you. I would postpone till after Christmas unless they can do fit you in before.

[Dickyticker26 in reply to Platypus6]

Yes thanks again

I think I will try to postpone until the end of February which will be the 6 month mark when the sternum is supposed to be fully healed-although I have been reading about post operation sternum pain which apparently can go on and on

There are also issues around medication-I will have been on Clopidogrel since last Christmas and I have read that it should only be for a year and the post operation report says that the Apixaban blood-thinner should come to an end

That just leaves the bisoprolol and statins which have led to undesirable side-effects

[Lucky5]

Hi. Ive had a holter monitor fitted twice. the first was two years ago and it was the type that connected to your belt which was awkward. the other was 2 months ago and it was a small round disk about 40mm across which stuck to your chest with two wires off. so totally different as I totally forgot about it. Personally I would enjoy Christmas and see them straight after. good luck !

[Dickyticker26 in reply to Lucky5]

Yes thanks for that too

I need to catch up with the consultant who gave the appointment

It was he who was pushing the idea of the MIDCAB procedure for the bypass but the surgeons at St George's and St Thomas' would only do it by the "conventional" method though the chest

Quite a few things should have settled down by February and I hope to have been able to make some impact on the outstanding gardening!

[Qualipop]

I recently had a holter monitor. It was tied to a ribbon to hang round my neck and just had two wires with sticky pads on my chest. Felt a bit heavy round my neck but not a problem.

[Dickyticker26 in reply to Qualipop]

Thanks for responding-it looks as if I will be taking a rain check on the appointment and giving myself a bit more time to be ready for further tests-I still haven't got over the trauma caused by the gp referring me to the hospital for colonoscopy when I saw them about 2 months constant diarrhoea after starting on statins-answer stop the statins

This was at the suggestion of a heart surgeon at St George's

[Qualipop]

Hahaha I had 3 colonoscopies. Just as they gave me the laxative for the second one, the fire alarm went off. The place could have burned down round me. I was NOT moving from that bathroom. Avoid at all costs. They don't hurt but the prep sure does. Why on earth didn't they think about the medication? Stupid. My husband was the same on statins.

[Dickyticker26]

In 1992 I started urinating black blood and had 2 visits to the operating theatre

I was told at first that I had cancer of the bladder

Between the theatre visits I had a haemorrhage because I believe the surgeon cut too deep Then he told me that he had the biopsy report and that there was no cancer

I told the surgeon that at the time I had become addicted to Beecham Powders a combination of caffeine and aspirin and that must have been causing the bleeding

He said that I was talking nonsense and that it was more likely due to my mother smoking when pregnant with me!

Thereafter I was required to attend regularly for cystoscopies which I found intrusive and unpleasant though not especially painful

To start with they gave an internal anaesthetic cream and when it was discontinued I realised that it was marginally worse than having the procedure without anaesthetic

I was not given any reason for these examinations other than that they wanted "to keep an eye on me"

I had found that as soon as I stopped taking the aspirin the bleeding stopped and I worked it out that in was in the stomach and not in the bladder

I stopped going for cystoscopies and was summonsed to see the consultant who became very authoritarian and "hoity-toity" though not going so far as to use "fruity language"

When I worked for the Bournemouth council in the 1960's I used to go to court to get orders to force patients to take their tablets for TB-there was a large National Hospital right next to the town hall, but nothing was now said about my case and to this day "carcinoma" appears on my medical records

[Prada47]

Hi Dicky

I was going to say you would be lucky to get a technician in on Xmas Day but then I remembered when I had mine it was New Year and you just posted the recorder in the letter box at the Hospital.!!!

Regards

[Dickyticker26 in reply to Prada47]

Thanks-noted with interest!