Guide to Basic Electrocardiography

1. Introduction.- 2. A Way to Visualize the Electrocardiogram in Relation to the Heart.- 3. The Formal Reading of the Electrocardiogram.- The Description of the Electrocardiogram.- The Anatomy of the Normal Tracing.- The Interpretation of the Electrocardiogram.- 4. Indications for Performing an Electrocardiogram.- Screening.- Hypertension.- Coronary Artery Disease, Chest Pain, and Ischemia.- Pericarditis and Myocarditis.- Palpitations, Syncope, and Arrhythmias.- Valvular and Congenital Heart Disease.- 5. Abnormalities of Rhythm.- Supraventricular Arrhythmias.- Regular Supraventricular Rhythms.- Sinus Bradycardia.- Sinus Tachycardia.- Atrial Tachycardias.- Paroxysmal Supraventricular Tachycardias.- Rhythms Seen with Wolff-Parkinson-White and Related Syndromes.- Atrial Flutter.- Junctional Rhythms.- Irregular Supraventricular Rhythms.- Sinus Arrhythmia.- Premature Atrial Complexes.- Wandering Atrial Pacemaker (Multifocal Atrial Rhythm).- Multifocal Atrial Tachycardia.- Sinus Pauses and Sinus Arrest.- Premature Junctional Complexes.- Atrial Fibrillation.- Irregularity and the Ashman Phenomenon.- Atrial Fibrillation in Patients with WPW.- Regular Ventricular Rhythms.- Ventricular Escape Rhythm.- Accelerated Idioventricular Rhythm.- Ventricular Tachycardia.- Paced Rhythms.- Irregular Ventricular Rhythms.- Premature Ventricular Complexes.- Torsade de Pointes.- Ventricular Fibrillation.- Irregular Ventricular Paced Rhythms.- Capture as a Cause of Ventricular Irregularity.- Distinguishing Ventricular from Supraventricular Arrhythmias.- Ventricular Rhythms and Atrioventricular Block.- Mobitz Type I (Wenckebach) Second-Degree AV Block.- Mobitz Type II Second-Degree AV Block.- Third-Degree AV Block.- 6. Abnormalities of Conduction (Exclusive of Second-and Third-Degree Atrioventricular Block).- Abnormalities of the P-R Interval.- First-Degree Atrioventricular Block.- Abnormalities of the QRS Interval (Including Bundle Branch Blocks).- Right Bundle Branch Block.- Left Bundle Branch Block.- Abnormalities of the Ventricular Intrinsicoid Deflection.- Nonspecific Intraventricular Conduction Delay.- Abnormalities of the Q-T Interval.- 7. Abnormalities of the Electrical Axis.- Abnormalities of the P-Wave Axis.- Abnormalities of the QRS Axis.- Left-Axis Deviation.- Left Anterior Fascicular Block.- Right-Axis Deviation.- Left Posterior Fascicular Block.- Indeterminate or Inconsistent Frontal Plane Axis.- Lead Placement Errors.- Bifascicular and Trifascicular Blocks.- Abnormalities of the T-Wave Axis.- 8. Abnormalities of the P Wave.- The Tall P Wave.- The Wide and/or Notched P Wave.- 9. Abnormalities of the QRS Complex.- Abnormally Low QRS Voltages.- Abnormally High QRS Voltages.- Ventricular Hypertrophy.- Left Ventricular Hypertrophy.- Right Ventricular Hypertrophy.- Normal and Abnormal Q and R Waves.- Causes of Pseudoinfarction Patterns.- Accessory Pathway Syndromes.- Poor R Wave Progression.- Other Variations of the QRS Complex.- 10. Abnormalities of the ST Segment.- Elevated ST Segments.- Depressed ST Segments.- 11. Abnormalities of the T Wave and the U Wave.- The T Wave in Myocardial Infarction.- Tall T Waves.- Diphasic or Inverted T Waves.- Abnormalities of the U Wave.- 12. The Electrocardiogram in Childhood.- QRS Axis.- ST Segments.- T Waves.- References.- About the Authors.