The humble looking strip of ECG recorded in millions , every day across the globe has a complex definition.
And this definition is the most apt I have found.
An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a curve showing the potential variations against time in the whole body stemming from the heart, which is an electrochemical generator suspended in a conductive medium.
Einthoven(Dutch) is the the man who invented the ECG , got a Nobel price for not only inventing the string galvanmeter to record ECG, but also making us understand the rules of the electrical wave front that emanates from the heart.( Not to forget the original concept of who demonstrated electrical activity from heart by by capillary electrometer. by Waller.(British). In my opinion waller should have shared the Nobel prize. I am sure ,even Einthoven would agree to it.
Of course , do not ask which comes first ” Ionic flow” or “the current” that comes with it !
Credit goes to the creators of this wonderful book on medical physiology and put that free on the net . Three cheers to them .
The book is from University of Copenhagen , Pannum Institute of Medical Physiology.
Reference
British physiologist Augustus D. Waller of St Mary’s Medical School, London publishes the first human electrocardiogram. It is recorded with a capilliary electrometer from Thomas Goswell, a technician in the laboratory. Waller AD. A demonstration on man of electromotive changes accompanying the heart’s beat. J Physiol (London) 1887;8:229-234
Willem Einthoven introduces the term ‘electrocardiogram’ at a meeting of the Dutch Medical Association. (Later he claims that Waller was first to use the term). Einthoven W: Nieuwe methoden voor clinisch onderzoek [New methods for clinical investigation]. Ned T Geneesk 29 II: 263-286, 1893
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Dr.S.Venkatesan MD 