Recorders and monitoring

What does your heart do when you’re not paying attention?

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What are ambulatory BP recorders and what is Holter ECG monitoring?

Ambulatory blood pressure recorders are a way of assessing your blood pressure over the course of a day.

24 hour ECG monitors are an excellent way of monitoring what your heart rate and heart rhythm are doing over 24 hours.

About ambulatory BP recorders and Holter ECG monitoring

In this video, Dr Navin Chandra explains what you need to know about BP recorders and ECG monitoring.
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Supplementary information about 24hr ambulatory BP recorders and 24hr Holter ECG monitoring

Here, we’ve summarised the most important points about BP recorders and ECG monitoring

What are 24 hr ambulatory BP recorders?

Ambulatory blood pressure recorders are a way of assessing your blood pressure over the course of a day.

Often, when people go to check their blood pressure with their GP or with a health professional, they get falsely elevated readings. This is because they’re usually a little bit anxious about the fact they’re going to have their blood pressure checked.

Here at Many Beats, we want to know what your blood pressure is doing when you’re in your normal day-to-day environment, doing your normal day-to-day activities. That way, we can treat you appropriately, rather than basing our management plan on a single one-off reading.

Our test allows you to wear a blood pressure recorder throughout the day and overnight, giving us accurate information on exactly what your blood pressure’s doing.

24 hour ECG monitors are an excellent way of monitoring what your heart rate and heart rhythm are doing over 24 hours.

Monitoring your heart for this length of time, enables us to look specifically for your heart rate control, heart rate variability, and for any signs of heart rhythm abnormalities.

We have a higher chance of capturing any heart rhythm abnormalities if we fit you with the test for a whole day. We can then analyze the results and get back to you with a focus plan of what is happening with your heart rhythm.

They’re particularly useful for people that have symptoms of palpitations or have an awareness of a heartbeat which comes and goes during the course of a day.

24hr ambulatory BP recorders

We wrap a cuff around your upper arm, which is connected to a monitor. The cuff inflates several times an hour, usually at between 15 and 30-minute intervals. It takes accurate measurements of your blood pressure throughout the day and overnight while you carry out all of your usual activities.

24hr holter ECG monitors

Typically, we attach three ECG stickers or electrodes to your chest. These stickers are connected to wires which lead to a monitor that you clip to your belt.

24hr ambulatory BP recorder

Ambulatory blood pressure recorders provide an accurate assessment of what your blood pressure is doing while you’re performing your usual day-to-day activities.

24hr holter ECG monitor

The 24-hour ECG recording is performed by ECG electrodes that allow us to record the heart rhythm. We can then go away and analyse the data to see what your heart rate and rhythm are doing at various times of the day.

We expect that your heart rate will be higher at certain points during the daytime and lower at night, but it allows you to look for that variability.

24hr ambulatory BP recorder

A 24hr ambulatory BP recorder is especially important if you take blood pressure medications, as it can see how well they are working and make sure they are controlling your blood pressure through the day.

24hr Holter ECG monitor

A 24hr ECG is especially important if you have symptoms suggesting heart rhythm abnormalities like palpitations, dizzy spells, or blackouts. It allows us to see what their heart rhythm is doing, specifically at those times when they feel symptoms.

Both ambulatory ECG recordings and 24-hour ECGs are non-invasive tests and are painless.

They monitor your blood pressure via a cuff and monitor your heart rate rhythm via ECG stickers on your chest. At first, It can be a little bit strange having something attached to you. But you quickly get used to it and can continue doing all of your activities as usual.

The only thing to avoid is getting them wet. So you will need to avoid showering, going to the gym and swimming, for example.

24hr ambulatory BP recorder

From the results we look for:

  • A variation in recordings from day to night (this is normal and important).
  • And, If you are already on tablets for blood pressure, we look to see if you have good blood pressure control and whether you require any adjustments to the dosing.

24hr Holter ECG monitor

The ECG monitor’s readings may reveal an underlying heart condition, new symptoms, and potential triggers. It may also help to show problems caused by medication.

There are no risks involved with ambulatory blood pressure recordings or with 24 hour ECG recordings as the tests are noninvasive.

We want to make sure we maximize the opportunity to get quality information from these tests. The only risk that could arise is that you could accidentally disconnect or tamper with the device while you are wearing it, which could lead to inaccurate information.

To avoid this, we ensure that you are completely happy with the equipment and understand what you can and cannot do. For example, you should not get it wet and so should avoid showering.

Which of these two people describe you best?

Whether you have heart disease or if you’re at risk, we have a plan that can help you live a long and healthy life

You’re at risk of heart disease

Worried about your risk of heart disease? Why wait to get diagnosed. Take action now to curb your risk and avoid medical or surgical treatment. Take our heart disease risk assessment. This easy online tool will guide you to what we think you should do next.

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You have heart disease

If you’ve been diagnosed with heart disease and want to maximise how you manage this disease, book an appointment with us. We’ll carry out the tests we need to give us all the data to map out a plan for you so you can live a healthier and longer life and avoid premature medical or surgical treatment.

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What Avatar’s average day is like after treatment

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What avatar’s average day is like before treatment

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Good vs evil

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Many Beats gives you a map to turn your life around and avoid developing heart disease

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Insurers

We are happy to be assured by the following private medical insurance providers

It’s the wonderful words of our patients that make this job so worthwhile

Excellent bedside manner / patient care, thoughtful analysis and care. Great cardiologists!

J. T.

Dr Elghamaz was professional and compassionate in equal measure. He made me feel completely at ease and explained in detail exactly my situation answering all questions kindly and in a language I understood – not medical jargon. A complete gentleman under whose care I have every confidence.

R. R.

I called Dr Chahal’s secretary to get advice and an appointment for a stress echocardiogram as quickly as possible. Dr Chahal called me himself, to explain the procedure, and he managed to fit me in quickly, as I requested. On the day, he and his colleague carried out the test quickly, efficiently and kindly, explaining what they were doing and why. I would certainly recommend them as true healthcare professionals.

M. S.

Dr Elghamaz was very efficient, thorough and personable and made me feel at ease through through the process of undergoing several tests and then discussing results with myself and my husband to ensure we understood everything and were comfortable.

L. S.

Highly recommended. Professional, honest, put me at ease. Wonderful experience all around.

L. O.

Dr Elghamaz goes above and beyond for his patients. As well as being kind, he is extremely thorough, and I feel very comfortable knowing he is in charge of my care.

C. W.
Dr Sehmi is a fusion of the best of the old and new schools of medicine. Whilst reassuringly up to date with the latest evidence-based practice and comfortable with all the leading-edge technology of his field, he has always listened to my fears and given informed answers to all my questions.
S. L.

I had a really positive experience when I saw Dr Navin Chandra in his clinic. He took time to really listen to my problems and then explained what was wrong in simple terms. I had all my tests performed swiftly and have started to feel much better!

P.B.

Having been referred for specialist Cardiology review, I was very fortunate to be assigned Dr Sehmi as my Consultant. From the outset, his level of interest in my personal case has been exceptional. I have had several consultants for a variety of reasons over the years but Dr Sehmi is the first where a consultant has proactively followed up in between appointments to determine progress.

N. T.

I was admitted under Cardiology and Dr Chandra was my Consultant. He quickly got to the heart of the problem and he and his team didn’t miss a step. Later that evening Dr Chandra took the time to see my partner and his patience and knowledge gave us the answers to our many questions.

R. K.

Affiliations and memberships

We are happy to be associated with the following esteemed organisations

Live a longer and healthier life

Book an appointment and we’ll test your heart so we can map out a plan to give you the best chance of maximising your longevity

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How it works

3 easy steps to get on the road to heart health

GET AN APPOINTMENT

Just get in touch with us to book a date and time that suits you and we’ll let you know how to visit.

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GET TESTED

Typically, we’ll set you up to take specific tests that will give us the information we need to make an accurate assessment of your heart’s health and recommend a plan.

LIVE LONGER

With your cardiologist-vetted plan, we’ll support you in the long term so you can build the habits that will enable you to live a longer and healthier life.

More information on heart disease

We’ve produced many informative videos and blog posts so you can educate yourself about heart disease risk factors, symptoms, tests and treatments.

Read more about heart disease

Educate yourself further about your heart health by reading the links below

To learn more about cardiovascular disease, including the causes and prevention techniques, click here.

The NHS has an informative write-up on cardiovascular diseases, which can be found here.

A great test that tells the myths and facts about your heart health can be found here.

If you would like an excellent overview of the symptoms of heart attacks, please click here.

If you would like to learn more about all the types of heart diseases, please click here for more information.

About the cardiologists

The Many Beats team consists of not one, but four highly experienced consultant cardiologists

Dr Navtej Chahal

Consultant Cardiologist

PhD FESC FACC

Navtej is a Consultant Cardiologist at Many Beats. He also consults at the London Northwest NHS Trust and the Royal Brompton Hospital, London having qualified from Guy’s and St Thomas’ Medical School in 2001. He is an Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer at Imperial College London…

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Dr Navin Chandra

Consultant Cardiologist

MD, MRCP, MBBS, BSc

Navin is a Consultant Cardiologist at Many Beats. He is also a Consultant Cardiologist at Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust and an Honorary Consultant Cardiologist at Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust. He qualified from Guy’s, King’s & St. Thomas’s in 2004...

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Dr Ahmed Elghamaz

Consultant Cardiologist

FRCP, MB BCh

Ahmed is a Consultant Cardiologist at Many Beats. He also consults at Northwick Park Hospital and London North West Healthcare University Hospitals NHS Trust and is an Honorary Consultant Cardiologist at Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust. He completed his junior…

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Dr Joban Sehmi

Consultant Cardiologist

BSc, MBBS, MRCP, PhD

Joban is a Consultant Cardiologist at Many Beats. His NHS practice is at West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS trust. He sees patients privately at Spire in Bushey and Bishops Wood Hospital in Northwood. He trained in medicine at Guy’s and St. Thomas’ medical school and qualified in 2003 with numerous academic awards…

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