[Durgical](https://durgical.com/en/) › [DurgiPedia](https://durgical.com/en/durgipedia/) › [Clinical skills](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/) › The ECG # The ECG The reading method and the classic tracings: blocks, tachycardias, infarction, pericarditis, hyperkalaemia, long QT, WPW and Brugada. 16 pages ## ECG tracing - [**Atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter** The upper chambers beat chaotically (fibrillation) or in a fast loop (flutter); the ECG shows…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/atrial-fibrillation-and-atrial-flutter/) - [**AV blocks: first, second (Mobitz I and II) and third degree** In AV block the beat from the upper chambers is delayed or stopped on its way to the lower…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/av-blocks-first-second-and-third-degree/) - [**Broad-complex tachycardia, VF and the arrest rhythms** Dangerous fast rhythms that start in the ventricles, and the four rhythms of cardiac arrest…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/broad-complex-tachycardia-vf-and-the-arrest-rhythms/) - [**Brugada pattern and other sudden-death ECGs** Some resting ECGs show a hidden electrical fault that can cause fainting or sudden death in…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/brugada-pattern-and-other-sudden-death-ecgs/) - [**Hyperkalaemia and other electrolyte changes** Too much or too little potassium, calcium or magnesium changes the shape of the ECG waves, and…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/hyperkalaemia-and-other-electrolyte-changes/) - [**Left and right ventricular hypertrophy and atrial enlargement** When a heart chamber grows thick or large from extra work, the ECG shows taller waves and…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/left-and-right-ventricular-hypertrophy-and-atrial-enlargement/) - [**Narrow-complex tachycardia (SVT)** A fast heartbeat that starts above the ventricles; the narrow QRS and the position of the P…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/narrow-complex-tachycardia/) - [**Paced rhythms** A pacemaker sends small electrical pulses to the heart; each pulse shows as a sharp spike on the…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/paced-rhythms/) - [**Pericarditis on the ECG** Inflamed lining around the heart lifts the ST segment in almost every lead at once, unlike a…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/pericarditis-on-the-ecg/) - [**Pre-excitation: Wolff–Parkinson–White** An extra electrical wire between the upper and lower heart chambers lets the signal skip the…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/pre-excitation-wolff-parkinson-white/) - [**Right and left bundle branch block and fascicular blocks** When one of the heart's wiring branches is blocked, one ventricle activates late and the QRS…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/right-and-left-bundle-branch-block-and-fascicular-blocks/) - [**Sinus rhythm, sinus tachycardia, bradycardia and arrhythmia** When the heart's own pacemaker sets the beat it is sinus rhythm; it can be fast, slow or vary…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/sinus-rhythm-sinus-tachycardia-bradycardia-and-arrhythmia/) - [**STEMI and its territories, and STEMI mimics** A blocked heart artery lifts the ST segment in the leads that face the dying muscle; the leads…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/stemi-and-its-territories-and-stemi-mimics/) - [**The ECG in pulmonary embolism, hypothermia and digoxin effect** A clot in the lungs, a dangerously low body temperature and the heart drug digoxin each leave…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/the-ecg-in-pulmonary-embolism-hypothermia-and-digoxin-effect/) - [**The long QT interval** The heart takes too long to recharge after each beat, which can set off a twisting, fast…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/the-long-qt-interval/) ## Interpretation - [**Reading an ECG step by step** A fixed order for reading a heart tracing, so that the rate, rhythm, conduction and the shape of…](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/reading-an-ecg-step-by-step/) ## A to Z - [A](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/a/) - [B](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/b/) - [C](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/c/) - [D](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/d/) - [E](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/e/) - [F](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/f/) - [H](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/h/) - [I](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/i/) - [L](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/l/) - [N](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/n/) - [O](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/o/) - [P](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/p/) - [R](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/r/) - [S](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/s/) - [T](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/t/) - [U](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/u/) - [V](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/a-z/v/) [← Clinical skills](https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/) Educational content; it does not replace supervised hands-on training, your institution's protocols or a prescriber's order. A procedure is learnt with a teacher and done only once you are trained to do it. Representative model, for educational purposes only. --- Source: https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/areas/ecg/ License: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Cite as: DurgiPedia (durgical.com), https://durgical.com/en/clinical-skills/areas/ecg/