Medtronic study shows benefits of Reveal LINQ monitor

Medtronic has highlighted new data that shows the benefits its Reveal LINQ insertable cardiac monitor can offer in the case of patients with a history of cryptogenic stroke.

One-year results from a real-world study of the device showed that it was able to detect atrial fibrillation at a greater rate than previously reported in the CRYSTAL AF Study, a randomised controlled clinical trial.

After 12 months, 1,737 atrial fibrillation episodes were detected in 192 patients, resulting in an detection rate of 16.3 percent. This represents a 32 percent relative increase compared to that seen in the CRYSTAL AF Study after the same amount of time.

The findings of the study also showed that 72 percent of atrial fibrillation would have gone undiagnosed in stroke patients if cardiac monitoring had been limited to 30 days, rather than the longer-term surveillance Reveal LINQ can provide.

Study co-author Dr John Rogers, a cardiologist at the Scripps Clinic, said: "The vast majority of patients had their first atrial fibrillation episode beyond the range of 30-day conventional monitoring, reinforcing the need to reevaluate the standard atrial fibrillation monitoring guidelines for cryptogenic stroke patients."