[Friedrich Martius' studies of myocardial contraction and heart movements a century ago]

During the 19th century apex beat record represented the only possibility to document the movements of the heart. Friedrich Martius, head of the department of internal medicine of the university of Rostock, succeed with the acustic mark-method to divide the systole in the period of isometric contraction and in the ejection time. As a precursor to the apexcardiography being developed half a century later, he used the apex beat record in the differential diagnosis of cardiac dilatation.