Measures ECG Interpretation


Measures

  • Forced Expired Volume in the first second (FEV1):
    This is a measure of how much of the FVC the subject exhaled in the first second. A normal person will exhale around 80% of their FVC in the first second.
  • FEV1/FVC:
    This is the percent of the FVC that person exhaled in the first second (see above). Both measures are important to look at together because if the FVC is low, the FEV1 will also be low (as in restrictive diseases such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis; however in these diseases, the person’s ability to exhale is not usually compromised).

Other Flow Measures

  • While the FEV1 and the FEV1/FVC are the most useful flow measures, others are available and often obtained.
  • Forced Expiratory Flow between 25% and 75% (FEF25-75): This is the average flowrate calculated as the subject is exhaling between 25% and 75% of his/her FVC. Think about it this way: As the subject forcibly exhales the FVC, the rate at which the flow is leaving the lungs is not constant, but rather changes over the length of exhalation.
  • Peak Expiratory Flow (PEF or sometimes PEFR): The highest flowrate the subject attains during exhalation. It usually occurs at the beginning of exhalation. Often used as an indication of effort.



Authors and Sources

Authors and Reviewers


Sources

  • Electrocardiography for Healthcare Professionals, 6th Edition Kathryn Booth and Thomas O'Brien
    ISBN10: 1265013470, ISBN13: 9781265013479
    McGraw Hill, 2023
  • Rapid Interpretation of EKG's, Sixth Edition
    Dale Dublin
    Cover Publishing Company
  • EKG Reference Guide
    EKG.Academy
  • 12 Lead EKG for Nurses: Simple Steps to Interpret Rhythms, Arrhythmias, Blocks, Hypertrophy, Infarcts, & Cardiac Drugs
    Aaron Reed
    Create Space Independent Publishing
  • Heart Sounds and Murmurs: A Practical Guide with Audio CD-ROM 3rd Edition
    Elsevier-Health Sciences Division
    Barbara A. Erickson, PhD, RN, CCRN
  • The Virtual Cardiac Patient: A Multimedia Guide to Heart Sounds, Murmurs, EKG Jonathan Keroes, David Lieberman
    Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkin)
    ISBN-10: 0781784425; ISBN-13: 978-0781784429
  • Project Semilla, UCLA Emergency Medicine, EKG Training Breena R. Taira, MD, MPH
  • ECG Reference Guide
    PracticalClinicalSkills.com






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