Electrocardiography

An electrocardiogram (ECG) is the recorded tracing produced by the electrocardiograph giving rise to the familiar and beloved waveforms, PQRST. The EGG provides information about normal and abnormal heart conduction. This chapter guides veterinary technicians and nurses when obtaining an ECG. It also describes the conduction journey, highlighting electrical events, tissue locations, and the corresponding ECG waves, segments, and intervals. The chapter also gives a guideline of measurement locations for each wave, deflection, segment, and interval with brief comments on enlargement patterns and indications. Ambulatory ECG monitoring is an extremely valuable tool in a patient with a collapse or syncopal history whose resting ECG or long rhythm strip has inconclusive findings. For rhythms or conduction abnormalities that are transient or infrequent, monitoring with an external loop event recorder, external nonlooping event recorder, Holter monitor, or new generation mobile real‐time cardiac telemetry can help pin point the problem.