What you can expect

The process of an implantable loop recording procedure involves the following:

Your implantable loop recording procedure will be performed in the hospital or the outpatient office setting.
As the procedure begins, you’ll be given local anesthesia.
An electrophysiologist, a cardiologist who specializes in the heart’s electrical system, will make an incision in your chest, where the implantable loop recorder will be inserted. The device is about the size of a small USB thumb drive.
Once the device has been properly implanted in your chest, the electrophysiologist will close up your incision with stitches.
After your procedure, you can typically return home and to normal activity the same day.

Results

Your doctor will be able to view data from the recorder on a specialized computer. After a diagnosis has been made, or at the end of the device’s battery life, the recorder may be removed in a procedure very similar to the one used for insertion.

Risks

Receiving an implantable loop recorder is a very safe procedure. Rarely, patients may experience infection at the insertion site. However, an implantable loop recorder, unlike a pacemaker, doesn’t have wires (leads) directly into the heart, so it doesn’t present a risk of infection from that standpoint. Also, note that you shouldn’t undergo a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) test from another doctor without first speaking with your electrophysiologist.

Implantable Loop Recording