UNIT-1

ARVINDH S
GOVARTHAN R
CHARACTERISTICS OF ECG
ECG (Electro Cardio Grapy):
• Electrocardiography is the process of producing
an electrocardiogram a recording of the heart's electrical activity
through repeated cardiac cycles.
• It’s a painless and noninvasive test used to quickly detect heart problem
and monitor the heart’s health.
USES OF ECG
AN ECG CAN HELP DETECT:
• Arrhythmias -heart beat to slowly, too quickly, or irregularly.
• Coronary heart disease –where the hearts blood supply is blocked or
interrupted by a buildup of fatty substances.
• Heart attack- supply of blood to the heart is suddenly blocked.
• Cardiomyopathy- heart walls become thickened or enlarged.
Block Diagram OF ECG:
Functions of Each block.
Electrodes
• We know the ECG electrodes mainly used for the pickup of ECG Signals
are five in number.
• By placing these electrodes at appropriate parts of body.
Lead selector
• As told earlier each pair of lead conveys certain information.
• The lead pair can be selected by a lead selector switch which can be
switched to different lead pairs according to the type of waveform
needed.
Pre-amplifier
• The ECG signal is having very weak amplitude levels.
• The pre-amplifier used here will be an operational amplifier or
instrumentation amplifier with high gain. They have High CMRR and
extremely high input impedance.
Driver
• We use a driver motor of suitable specification to drive the paper roller.
• Normally the ECG waveform is to be plotted on a moving chart paper to
find out the irregularities (if there is) in the P,Q,R,S,T and U regions of
the ECG waveform .
PMMC Galvanometer
• PMMC (Permanent Magnet Moving Coil) galvanometer is a special type
of device, where the deflection of the coil depends on the amplitude and
the polarity of the signal applied to its input.
• The writing tip of the hot tip pen is connected to the chart paper.
Hot - tip stylus and stylus heater
• In most common ECG recording techniques, we use hot tip stylus for
thermal writing.
 • It is because, we normally use thermal recorders for the plotting of
waveforms. The stylus is kept hot always by the stylus heater power
supply.
• The writing tip is a stylus heated by a resistance wire.
Recorders
• As discussed now, usually we use thermal recorders for the
representation of ECG waveform. The paper used in thermal recorders is
of special material which turns black when heated.
• The hot tip of the stylus will turn the white paper black whenever it
touches.
• The tip of the stylus moves in accordance with the movement of the coil
which in turn is proportional to the amplitude and polarity of the ECG
waveform.
• Since the tip of the stylus is in contact with the thermal chart recorder, a
clear representation of the ECG waveform is obtained.

Electrodes
• Electrodes are the actual conductive pads attached to the body surface.
• Any pair of electrodes can measure the electrical potential
difference between the two corresponding locations of attachment. Such
a pair forms a lead.
Types
1. 3-Lead(used in the medical transports)
2. 5-Lead(used in ICU during surgery time)
3. 12-Lead(used for the detailed view of the Heart)
ELECTRODE PLACEMENT
12-lead ECG
Divide into two parts
a. 6- LIMB LEADS [ vertical plane or angle of the heart is obtained by 4
electrodes ]
b. 6- CHEST LEADS [ horizontal plane or angle of the heart is obtained by
6 electrodes ]

Placement of Limb Lead

6 Angles formed(point of view)

• 10 Electrodes Required To Produce 12-lead ECG

 • 4 Electrodes On All 4 Limbs (RA, LL, LA, RL)6 Electrodes On Precordium
(V1–6)
• Monitors 12 Leads (V1–6- Unipolar), (I, II, III- Bipolar) And (Avr, Avf,
Avl- Unipolar)
• Allows Interpretation Of Specific Areas Of The Heart
• Inferior (II, III, Avf)lateral (I, Avl, V5, V6)anterior (V1–4)

WAVE FORM
4-Important nodes to represent ECG:
1. Sino Atrial Node(SA)
2. Atrio Ventriular Node(AV)
3. Bundle Of His
4. Purkinje Fibers
Normal rhythm produces four entities – a P wave, a QRS complex, a T
wave, and a U wave – that each have a fairly unique pattern.
• The P wave represents atrial depolarization.
• The PR segment represent the time required for an impulse to travel
through the atria, AV node and bundle of his to reach ventricles.
• The QRS complex represents ventricular depolarization.
• The ST Segment represent the time when ventricular fibres are fully
depolarized.
• The T wave represents ventricular repolarization.
• The U wave represents papillary muscle repolarization.
• Every depolarization followed by a repolarization.
APPLICATION
• Diagnosing irregularities in the heart
• Recording changes in the heart
• Establishing baseline for other EKG by using the electrocardiogram
machine
• Measuring any heart damage and weaknesses in various parts of the
heart muscle
• Diagnosing abnormal heart rhythms
MERITS
• ECG is used to detect the cardiac conditions of the patients after surgical
or any other operation and after application of anesthesia.
• ECG test is quick, painless and safe.
• ECG test is cheap in cost.
Demerits
• It does not provide underlying heart problems for patients not having
any symptoms.
 • It does not always provide help in accurate diagnosis. More tests are
needed to trace serious heart problems undetected by normal ECG
curve.
SUMMARY
An electrocardiogram, commonly abbreviated as ECG or EKG, is a medical
test that records the electrical activity of the heart over a period of time. It is a
valuable diagnostic tool used to assess the heart's rhythm and detect various
cardiac abnormalities.