Wearable 3-Lead Electrocardiogram Placement Model for Fleet Sizing of Medical Devices

Area of Science:

• Space Medicine
• Biomedical Engineering
• Wearable Technology

Background:

• Electrocardiography (ECG) is vital for monitoring astronaut health during spaceflight.
• Current ECG monitoring relies on clinician-placed electrodes, posing challenges for self-placement in space.
• Automated health monitoring for long-duration exploration missions (LDEMs) requires reliable, wearable ECG systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a method for quantifying electrode placement for 3-lead, chest-mounted ECG systems.
• To address challenges in ECG data artifacts caused by self-placement variability in space exploration.
• To improve the reliability and usability of wearable ECG monitoring for astronauts.

Main Methods:

• A novel method for quantifying electrode placement using two-dimensional chest measurements.
• Analysis of electrode positioning for 3-lead, chest-mounted ECG configurations.
• Development of positioning computations tailored for male and female chest dimensions.

Main Results:

• Identified distinct electrode positioning computations for males and females, with some overlap.
• Found that the vertical distribution of electrode positions is wider than the horizontal distribution.
• Demonstrated the feasibility of quantifying electrode placement for improved wearable ECG design.

Conclusions:

• The developed method enables improved ECG wearable design for individual astronauts and the fleet.
• Implementation will enhance the reliability, comfort, and usability of self-applied ECG systems.
• This advancement supports enhanced autonomous health monitoring capabilities for exploration medicine.