Electrocardiography / Electrocardiogram (ECG)
Home | Diagnosis | Non-Invasive Diagnostic Procedures | Electrocardiography / Electrocardiogram (ECG)
Electrocardiography is recording of the electrical activity of the heart. This electrical activity is recorded from the body surface by usually 12 electrodes placed on the limbs and chest, held in place using elastic, suction caps or sticky pads. The test takes about 10 minutes to complete.
The electrocardiogram (ECG) is the printed result of the test, which provides information about:
- the heart rhythm and rate
- thickening of the heart muscle (hypertrophy) and enlargement of the chambers of the heart
- the presence of old or ongoing heart attacks
- evidence of a poor blood supply to the heart (ischaemia).
ECGs may be conducted at rest, during exercise or drug-induced stress, and over time (Holter monitoring). The exercise ECG allows assessment of how much activity a person can undertake comfortably (referred to as exercise tolerance). Holter monitoring is ECG monitoring during a normal day, using an ECG monitor in a small satchel worn across the body. This enables the patient to carry on with their normal activities while measuring spontaneous periods of ischaemia and symptoms, and irregular heart rhythms (arrhythmias).
