Electrocardiogram


This week I’d like to take a break from my usual post on genetic diseases. I want to talk about a machine used in every Ambulance, medical provider’s office and hospital called an electrocardiogram or ECG/EKG for short. Electrocardiograms is a simple machine that detects and records the heart’s electrical activity. Basically, an ECG can show how fast the heart is beating, the regularity of the heart’s rhythm, the strength and timing of the impulses passing through one’s heart.  

So how does an Electrocardiogram work? With each heartbeat, a signal is sent throughout the heart that correlates with the flow of blood. This signal helps gather the P wave, QRS waves, and the Q wave on an Electrocardiogram. Each electrical signal begins in a group of cells called the sinus node (SA) which is located in the right atrium. From the SA node, the signal travels through the right and left atria which causes the atria to contract thus helping get blood to the ventricles. The electrical signals moving through the atria is recorded as the P wave on the EKG.  The electrical signal passes between the atria and ventricles through the atrioventricular node (AV). The signal slows down when passing through the AV node which allows the ventricles to finish filling with blood. On an EKG, this part of the process is a flat line between the end of the P wave and the beginning of the Q wave. The electrical signal the leaves the AV nodes and travels along the bundle of His. From there the signal goes on into the right and left bundle branches and across the hearts ventricles, which forces them to contract and pump blood into the lungs and the rest of the body. This process is recorded as QRS waves on an EKG.

After hooking a patient up to an ECG and running the machine, the data is then recorded on a graph, so it can be interpreted for various heart complications. An ECG is primarily used when an individual is experiencing symptoms of chest pain, heart murmurs, arrhythmia, or syncopal episodes. An abnormal ECG reading can signify a STEMI (ST elevation myocardial infarction), or heart conditions such Atrial fibrillation.  




Comments

  1. Caitlyn GaffneyNovember 2, 2017 at 10:31 AM

    I have heard about an ECG multiple times. However, I never actually knew exactly how they worked. It is so cool to see how awesome technology is and what it can show us! Interesting post!

    ReplyDelete

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