Loop recorder

You were placed on apixaban because if you have the odd run of atrial fibrillation, the risk of a stroke is about five times (X5) the risk it is normally when the heart is behaving. You have complained of an irregular heart beat which has/not (?) been confirmed so far, but if it does turn out to have been a few runs of AF, then the apixaban is good insurance. You can stop it if the longer term loop recorder, when it's polled after a few days and weeks, shows no atrial fibrillation or other arrhythmia that makes you a risk for a thromboembolic event...a stroke.

I will have to let others address your questions about its implantation and what it's like afterwards. But for now, the apixaban might just save your life.

I had a Reveal LINQ loop recorder put in a couple years ago for something similar. The procedure was quick, maybe 10-15 minutes, done under local anesthesia in the office. Some pressure, no real pain, just mild soreness for a few days afterward, like a bruise.

As for why she wants it: it monitors continuously for months, not just 2 weeks, so it can catch sporadic AFib that a short patch might miss. That gives her better data before deciding to stop the Eliquis. Worth asking her what she's looking for (like "no AFib for X months") before making that call.

Good luck!

Just so you know:
A loop recorder is not typically monitored in real-time, meaning it doesn't continuously send every heartbeat signal to a doctor. Instead, it continuously records heart rhythm and only transmits data when it detects an abnormal event or at scheduled intervals, allowing for review later by a healthcare provider; essentially, it acts as a long-term heart monitor that stores data for analysis when needed.
I refused one almost 4 years ago after a dizzy event. Seemed like a pretty standard recommendation at the time, one size fits all. My event turned out to be unrelated to my heart and didn’t happen again. We are all different, but in my case I felt that my cardiologist was rushing me into it. Fortunately, I made the right decision for my situation. By the way, I have been off all meds including Eliquis for over 4 years after a successful mitral valve repair. That’s my story at 82 years old.
Regards,
Sagan

My wife had the Abbott Loop recorder put in and it lasted for two years before it just stopped working about a month or so ago. She was put out for the Procedure. She did get calls when the loop recorder software was closed and no readings were coming into the data center monitoring service. As a layman, I do question how effective it is in catching real issues. First of all, you can’t pull your data out yourself as the only one can do that is the doctor that you’ve chosen to do the procedure for you. The Exception seems to be when someone like Mayo, has their own reader that is compatible with Abbotts loop recorder. My wife had several events that were painful but did not receive one phone call and did not receive one phone call even when she identified them on the software app as an issue. The doctor sets the range at which an event is defined than anything outside that Range one is supposed to get a phone call.Now we are in the process of trying to figure out whether she really needs it anymore because she has already had her post field ablation and whether it should be removed or replaced with a new one. She is on Eliquis. The one thing that I would do different in terms of the data, is to register right off the bat, another Doctor Who has permission to access the data through the Merlin system. One can always ask the electrophysiologist for the data, but if the doctors office is not very efficient, it can require more than a few phone calls and chasing for your own heart data.

A loop recorder is only as useful as the person reading it. I had a Medtronic device implanted about 4 years ago. The procedure was so quick, it was completed before I realized it. I had a new one less than a year ago. The EP gets a monthly summary, which his PA shares with me. It is an event recorder and shows details and burden. I will meet with that PA when I am at the Clinic in early October. She also incorporates the reports I send for ECG and BP from my daily Kardia and Omron readings. I will probably have a loop recorder for ever.

I was told I could strop taking Eliquis the day it is installed but I may have to start taking it again depending what the loop shows