Srtre Computer Processing of Ambulatory Electrocardiograms

The ability to record ambulatory electrocardiograms, as initially developed by Holter,<R>1</R> was an important step in medical technology. Until now, however, the usefulness of this procedure has been hampered by the difficulty in evaluating the recordings themselves.<R>2</R> Not only is the qualitative evaluation directly related to the skill of the individual handling the processing, but quantitative evaluation is essentially impossible. As a result, techniques that maximize the information obtained from ambulatory electrocardiograms<R>3</R> have become increasingly important-particularly in evaluating the role of arrhythmias in sudden death, the independent prognostic value of arrhythmias in the post-infarction period, and the response of arrhythmias to drugs.