This condition is dangerous and is called pericardial tamponade.
If the effusion is large or the fluid accumulates rapidly, it can prevent the heart from filling and pumping effectively. Inflammatory conditions such as a rheumatoid arthritis or a traumatic injury to the chest can lead to an overaccumulation of fluid. There is typically between 20 and 50 mL of pericardial fluid in this space. The pericardial cavity contains a serous fluid that functions as a lubricant. Pericarditis can sometimes be identified on the EKG. This often results in sharp pleuritic chest pain that causes the patient to seek medical attention. The heart even has its own electrical wiring (electrical conduction system) and plumbing systems (coronary arteries, great vessels).Ĭonditions such as a viral illness or an autoimmune disease such as rheumatoid arthritis can cause inflammation of the pericardium to occur. The house also has front and back doors that open up to the outside (the semilunar valves).
The right and left sides of the house were separated by a wall (interatrial and interventricular septum). The upstairs and downstairs are separated by doors that open and close (atrioventricular valves). The house itself is a walled structure (myocardium) with four rooms (chambers), two upstairs (atria) and two downstairs (ventricles). The outside of the “house” is protected by a fence (pericardium). I explained to them the heart’s structure was a lot like a house. If the EKG is going to tell us information about these structures, we need to make sure we have a solid understanding of what they are and how they work.Ī few years ago, I was asked by my son’s teacher to give a talk to her elementary school class about the heart.
We can obtain information about many structures of the heart such as the pericardium, myocardium, and coronary arteries. Although the EKG is a tracing of the heart’s electrical activity, it helps us see much more than that. The EKG tells us vital information about the heart. This book provides you with ample opportunities to put your skills to use, so make sure you take advantage of it. The only way to get proficient at EKG interpretation is practice, and lots of it. You will also be able to build clinical connections to your EKG interpretation: risk factors, symptoms, and potential treatment options that are worth considering. I will share with you some tricks of the trade I have learned along the way and help you watch out for things that trip providers up. You will learn how and why the EKG displays the waveforms it does for each condition. The goal of this book is to make you into a master EKG interpreter. Although EKG interpretation is considered a basic skill, many providers are not adequately prepared, and this can spell disaster for our patients. The only caveat is that the provider must be able to read the EKG’s message and know what to do with the information. It is inexpensive, noninvasive, and usually readily accessible. The 12-lead EKG has become an essential part of the workup for patients who present with potential cardiac disease. It can even add support for things like electrolyte abnormalities, intracranial bleeds, and hypothermia! The EKG is considered the gold standard for detecting abnormal heart rhythms and conduction problems, but it can also be utilized to diagnose conditions such as a myocardial infarction ( MI) and enlargement of the heart muscle. Since its inception, the EKG has proved itself to be a useful tool for detecting several pathologic conditions of the heart. The electrocardiogram was invented in 1903 by the Dutch physician Willem Einthoven.
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