Feasibility and cost savings of outpatient electrophysiologic testing.
 The feasibility of outpatient electrophysiologic testing was examined by reviewing 100 consecutive outpatient tests performed in 95 patients.
 Seventy-one of the patients (75%) had no underlying heart disease.
 The electrophysiologic tests were performed to evaluate supraventricular tachycardias (n = 47), nonsustained ventricular tachycardia (n = 20), unexplained syncope (n = 21), palpitation (n = 9) or intermittent heart block (n = 2).
 A mean of 2.8 +/- 0.5 6F electrode catheters were inserted through a femoral vein.
 An electrode catheter was inserted into a subclavian or internal jugular vein in 28 tests and a 5F cannula was inserted into a femoral artery to monitor the blood pressure in 20 tests.
 The results of 61 tests (61%) were abnormal.
 Patients were monitored for a mean of 3.8 +/- 1.2 h after the procedure and then discharged.
 No complications occurred.
 For cost analysis a subgroup of 60 of these patients was matched for age, gender, heart disease and indication for electrophysiologic testing with a group of 60 patients who underwent electrophysiologic testing as inpatients.
 Physicians' fees for the two groups were similar; however, the mean hospital charge was $5,845 +/- 3,763 for the inpatient group compared with only $2,120 +/- 1,244 for the outpatient group (p less than 0.001).
 Thus, outpatient electrophysiologic testing is feasible and safe and results in substantial cost savings in patients without life-threatening arrhythmias.
