Accuracy of a continuous real-time ECG dysrhythmia monitoring system.

The accuracy of QRS detection and premature ventricular beat (PVB) recognition by an on-line computer system was evaluated in a prospective study. Long-term studies in six cardiac patients and short term studies in thirty revealed a QRS detection accuracy of 99%. PVB accuracy was tested in twenty-eight patients for a total time of 415 minutes. About 10% of the heart beats in this group were recognized as PVBs by the cardiologist; 90% of these were correctly identified by the computer system. False positive PVBs were less than 1 % of the PVBs. The major types of PVBs missed were fusion beats and late PVBs. Some were unrecognized because of coincident excessive movement artifact. The computer system appeared to be sufficiently reliable to warrant further clinical studies.