Use Instructions

Page 125/233
MasterScope - Instructions for Use
Version 03.00 • Date 19FEB2020
Einthoven named the prominent waves alphabetically P, Q, R, S, T and U.
The flat amplitudes P, T and U are called waves, Q, R and S are called peaks.
The P-wave represents the wave of depolarization that spreads from the atrium.
The Q, R and S peaks, also referred to as QRS-complex, represent the wave of
depolarization from the ventricle.
The T-wave represents the repolarizations of the ventricle.
The U-wave is undefined.
10.1.1 The Waveform
Willem Einthoven (1860-1927), Professor of Physiology and Winner of the 1924
Nobel Prize, developed the ECG Standard Leads I, II and III, which are named after
their inventor.
10.1 Information on ECG Recording
An electrocardiogram (ECG) is a graphic recording of the changes occurring in the
electrical potentials (millivolt changes) at defined sites on the skin. The
continuously changing electrical fields are the result of depolarization and
polarization of the heart and are distributed in the body without any delay.
The electrical fields are caused by the cardiac cells, which are electrically polarized.
The ECG is a graphic recording of cardiac electrical activity but is not a measure for
cardiac pumping capacity (muscle strength).