Perioperative Holter monitoring and computer analysis of dysrhythmias in cardiac surgery.

In order to increase the accuracy and efficiency of studying perioperative dysrhythmias, 52 patients undergoing cardiac surgery were fitted preoperatively with a Holter monitor adapted for intraoperative recording, and the preoperative, intraoperative and early postoperative cardiac electrical activities were classified with a digital computer. Forty patients underwent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), eight had valve replacements, and four had combined procedures. The results showed the following: (1) high incidence of various dysrhythmias occurring during anesthesia induction and thoracotomy prior to aortic cross-clamp; (2) high incidence of continued atrial activity during cardioplegia; (3) lack of correlation between peak serum CPK-MB levels and dysrhythmias; and (4) a higher overall incidence of dysrhythmias in valve patients. Adapting the Holter monitor technique for cardiac surgery can solve the problem of observer vigilance inherent to such a study using a human "monitor watcher," and facilitate the accurate analysis of the vast amount of data obtained. This is important in quantitating the electrophysiologic effects of various perioperative interventions, such as the anesthetic agents, beta-blockers, calcium antagonists, and cardioplegic solutions.