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f the many diagnostic tools used to screen for and also aid the clinician in recognizing both the obvious and
O evaluate cardiac abnormalities, the 12-lead elec-
trocardiogram (ECG) is among the most basic.
subtle abnormalities that may help guide therapy.
These illustrations show different views of the heart Frontal plane leads = standard limb leads, I, II, III, and
obtained from each precordial (chest) lead. augmented leads aVR, aVL, and aVF. This allows an
examination of electrical conduction across a variety
of planes (such as the left arm to left leg, or right arm
to left arm).
Lead I
aV L
R aV
aVF
POSTERIOR Center of the heart
(zero point) Lead II Lead III
V6
Source: Morton PG, Fontaine DK, Hudak CM, Gallo BM. Critical care nursing:
V5 A holistic approach. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins;
2005:230.
V4
V1 V2 V3
ECG Grid
This ECG grid shows the horizontal axis and vertical axis and their respective measurement values.
0.20 0.04
sec sec
3 sec
Source: ECG Facts Made Incredibly Quick. Philadelphia, Pa: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; 2006:4.
An ECG waveform has three basic elements: a P wave, QRS complex QRS complex Axis
a QRS complex, and a T wave. They are joined by five lead I lead aVF
other useful diagnostic elements: the PR interval, the U Negative Negative Extreme right axis
wave, the ST segment, the J point, and the QT interval. deviation
Negative Positive Right axis deviation
R Positive Negative Left axis deviation
Positive Positive Normal axis
I aVR V1 V4 I aVR V1 V4
II aVL V2 V5 II aVL V2 V5
Pericarditis
Pericarditis, an inflammation of the
pericardium, typically produces dif-
II V5 fuse ST segment elevation in most
II V5 leads. Often, these changes may be
confused with other causes for ST
elevation, especially acute MI (AMI)
and early repolarization. Again, as
with any ECG evaluation, it is criti-
cal to evaluate the clinical context in
III V6
III V6 which the ECG abnormalities occur.
Pericarditis typically produces a fric-
tion rub that is heard on ausculta-
tion; the pain is generally sharp and
Arrows: ST-segment elevation Arrows: ST-segment resolution stabbing in nature, and is often re-
Source: Wagner GS. Marriott’s Practical Electrocardiography. 11th Ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Lippincott Williams & lieved by anti-inflammatory med-
Wilkins; 2008:214. ications (see Acute Pericarditis).
artery. These patients are considered to have left dominant Early repolarization
coronary circulation.1 Early repolarization is a normal variant and is not indicative
Elevated J points and ST segment elevation in the of coronary disease. It often occurs in young, healthy indi-
precordial leads V2 through V6, as well as in leads I and aVL, viduals, but in the setting of chest pain, it may be confused
indicate acute anterolateral wall injury. Deep Q waves suggest with myocardial injury. Most of the ST changes that occur in
that the possibility of scarring has already occurred in the an- early repolarization involve the precordial leads with J point
terior wall. Also, ST elevation in leads I and aVL indicate lat- elevation and a pattern of concave upward ST segments.
eral wall injury. Anterior wall infarct involves the left anterior
descending coronary artery; lateral wall injury is often caused BBB
by disease in the left circumflex artery. Electrical impulses reach the ventricles by way of AV junc-
In the acute stages of MI, ST segments generally elevate tion. Depolarization then occurs in a wave-like fashion in
within minutes or hours and may stay elevated for several the ventricles by way of the right and left bundle branches.
days. During evolution of the MI, the ST segments slowly The left bundle branch bifurcates into the anterior and
migrate toward the baseline and the T waves become in- posterior branches, whereas the right bundle branch is un-
verted. Over the next few weeks, the T waves usually return divided. Any condition that affects the normal electrical con-
to normal. Q waves may or may not evolve. duction in the ventricles will cause a delay, resulting in a
Other common causes for ST segment and T wave ab- widening of the QRS complex. The presence of widened QRS
normalities include LVH, pericarditis, early repolarization, complexes in all or most leads should alert the interpreter to
and BBBs. Less frequently seen causes include electrolyte the presence of a BBB. The next step is to determine in which
abnormalities and central nervous system abnormalities. branch (or branches) the conduction is delayed or blocked.
Once widened, QRS complexes are identified. An easy
LVH process exists to differentiate between RBBB and LBBB by
ST-T wave abnormalities associated with LVH most com- evaluating three key leads, specifically leads I, V1, and V6.
monly occur in the anterolateral leads, and are typically seen After an electrical impulse leaves the AV node, it normally
as a horizontal or downsloping ST segment and inverted T travels downward and activates the intraventricular sep-
wave . This pattern is often referred to as “strain” and thought tum in a left to right direction. Since V1 is to the right of
do not produce a widening of the QRS complex. They are AUTHOR DISCLOSURE
recognized by the axis changes that are produced. In general, The author has disclosed that she has no significant relationship or financial
a left anterior hemi-block causes a left axis deviation, and a interest in any commercial companies that pertain to this educational activity.
left posterior hemi-block produces right axis deviation.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Because the depolarization sequence in BBBs is abnor-
Karen Lieberman is a Nurse Practitioner, Cardiovascular Services, at Suburban
mal, repolarization may also be affected, producing ST Hospital, Bethesda, Md.