Katibi Ia

Racial differences in the ECG — selected aspects

INTRODUCTION Racial differences in the ECG have been known about for many years but there has been no significant comparison of large population groups. This study set out to remedy this shortcoming. METHODS Digital ECG data were available for four population samples gathered in Scotland, Taiwan, Nigeria and India. All ECGs were recorded in the different countries and processed centrally by the University of Glasgow ECG Analysis Program. Measurements were analysed statistically to look for significant differences. RESULTS There were 4223 individuals in the study (2559 males and 1664 females). In general terms, findings such as QRS duration being longer in males than females applied to all four races. More specifically, QRS voltages were higher in young black males compared to others, while ST amplitudes, as in V2, were higher in Chinese and Nigerian males than in Caucasians. CONCLUSION Race requires to be taken into account to enhance automated interpretation of the ECG.

Automatic detection of end QRS notching or slurring

The purpose of this study was to define criteria suited to automated detection of end QRS notching and slurring and to evaluate their accuracy. One hundred resting 12 lead ECGs from young adult men, split randomly into equal training and test sets, were examined independently by two reviewers for the presence of such notching or slurring. Consensus was reached by re-examination. Logic was added to the Glasgow resting ECG program to automate the detection of the phenomenon. After training, the automated detection had a sensitivity (SE) of 92.1% and a specificity (SP) of 96.6%. For the test set, SE was 90.5%, SP 96.5%. Two populations of healthy subjects--one Caucasian, one Nigerian--were analysed using the automated method. The prevalence of notching/slurring with peak/onset amplitude respectively ≥ 0.1 mV in two contiguous inferolateral leads was 23% and 29% respectively. In conclusion, the detection of end QRS notching or slurring can be automated with a high degree of accuracy.

Normal limits of the electrocardiogram in Nigerians

BACKGROUND There has been no large study of ECG measures derived by automated methods in an apparently healthy indigenous West African population. METHODS ECGs were recorded from apparently healthy Nigerians and analysed using automated methods. Age and sex based normal ranges were then established. RESULTS A total of 782 males and 479 females aged between 20 and 87years were studied. Mean QRS duration in males was 87.9±9.4ms and 83.4±7.6ms in females (P<.0001). Mean QTc (Hodges) was 393±16ms in males and 406±16ms in females (P<.0001). The Cornell index (SV3+RaVL) was higher in males and decreased with increasing age in males though the reverse was true in females (P<.0001). STj amplitude was lower in older compared to younger males and higher in males. CONCLUSION This is the first large study of automated ECG measurements from healthy blacks living in West Africa which allows the determination of ECG normal limits in such a population.

Lipid abnormalities among type 2 diabetes mellitus patients: our experience in Ilorin, Nigeria.

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