Abstract
Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common cardiac arrhythmia. Paroxysmal AF (PAF) comprises approximately half of AF cases and confers an equivalent risk of thromboembolism. PAF poses a particular diagnostic challenge given its variable frequency, potential brevity and frequent lack of symptoms. Currently no definitive method to identify PAF has been proposed although 24-hour and 1-week monitoring remains common practice. We aim to determine whether the prolonged use of a handheld ECG monitor is an effective investigational tool to improve the diagnosis of PAF in a targeted population.