In a long-term ECG, a patient's heart activity is measured over a period of 24 or 48 hours. The patient is given a mobile ECG device to wear on their body during the measurement period. With the help of the examination results, the doctor can detect cardiac arrhythmias in the patient's everyday life.
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"We need to examine your heart activity more closely and take a long-term ECG. I'll refer you to a cardiologist for this." Many patients hear these sentences from their GP every day, for example when they suspect
The abbreviation ECG stands for electrocardiography. This is a method used by a doctor to examine heart activity.
The first electrocardiogram came from a dog. The English physiologist A. D. Wailer experimented with the method in the 1880s. At the beginning of the 20th century, the Dutch doctor W. Einthoven further improved the technique. Since then, it has been able to provide important data for human health.
Einthoven was honored with the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1924.
With every heartbeat, the heart muscle contracts and pumps blood through the body. The sinus node in the heart dictates the rhythm and frequency of the contractions - like a conductor to his orchestra.
The sinus node works with electrical impulses. Signals are distributed throughout the heart via an excitation conduction system. The electrical voltage can be measured on the skin - and this is precisely what medicine uses in ECG examinations.
Two to six electrodes measure the voltage changes on the surface of the skin and transmit them to the ECG device. The device amplifies the signals and reproduces them as a curve. The doctor interprets these curves and draws conclusions about the heart function.
The waveform is printed out for evaluation or displayed on a monitor. Both variants are also called ECG, electrocardiogram.
Heart activity as a line on an ECG © jimmyan8511 | AdobeStock
Medicine distinguishes between three different types of ECG examination, which are used depending on the question being asked:
An ECG therefore provides different information depending on the area of application. On the one hand, it provides general information about cardiac activity at rest. It also shows how the heart muscle reacts to physical activity and how well it adapts to stress.
The long-term ECG gives the doctor clues about possible rhythm disturbances during the course of the day in the respective patient.
Many doctors' surgeries schedule appointments for a long-term ECG early in the morning. The ECG device consists of
The doctor attaches the electrodes to the patient's upper body and the cuff to the left upper arm. He then switches on the recorder.
Wiring for long-term ECG © Andreas Koch | AdobeStock
The device measures the blood pressure at regular intervals - at least once an hour. The heart rate is recorded continuously. The patient also keeps a log of their daily activities.
The doctor then links any irregularities in heart activity to specific activities or times of day.
The examination is intended to measure cardiac activity in the patient's everyday life. The diagnosis is therefore only reliable if the patient does everything they normally do in everyday life. This also includes sport.
A long-term ECG is a useful examination.
Some patients feel uncomfortable if audible noises occur during the measurement, for example at work. However, under no circumstances should this stand in the way of an examination.
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