New precordial bipolar electrocardiographic leads for detecting left ventricular hypertrophy

Abstract Background Novel small and wearable electrocardiogram (ECG) devices offer new means of recording cardiac activity in different applications. Our objective was to evaluate the performance of closely separated (6 cm) bipolar leads in differentiating subjects with left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) from healthy subjects. Methods The material contained body surface ECG of 236 healthy and 116 LVH subjects. A total of 36 vertical, 30 horizontal, and 66 diagonal bipolar leads located on the anterior thorax were analyzed. The QRS amplitudes were calculated, and the leads' overall diagnostic performance was assessed by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. Results The best overall diagnostic performances were obtained from 2 areas: one near the precordial electrodes of standard leads V1 to V3 and the other on lower anterior thorax. Vertical and diagonal bipolar leads located at lower anterior thorax provided the highest ROC areas (≥0.79). These bipolar leads also provided similar sensitivities than the traditional Sokolow-Lyon method. Conclusion The new short distance vertical and diagonal bipolar leads are efficient in discriminating subjects with LVH from healthy subjects based on QRS amplitude.