[Continuous automatic ECG analysis using a computer with the cardiac signal directly led in from the patient (II)....

It is shown that appraisal and comparison of the duration of the R-R intervals in continuous surveillance of patients by means of electronic computers on the on-line regimen provides for automatic diagnosis of most types of disorders of the cardiac rhythm. The elaborated criterion of arrhythmic cardiac contraction (ACR-R), which takes into account not only the absolute value of the time between heart contractions but also the trend of the changes in the next R-R interval, provides a high percentage of revealed arrhythmic contractions. Disorders of the rate of cardiac contractions may be diagnosed by means of an electronic computer by comparison between the mean value of intervals of normal duration and the preset threshold values. Disorders of the rhythm may be diagnosed by means of an electronic computer by assessment and comparison of the arrangement of the combinations of short, normal, and long R-R intervals. The elaborated algorithms are described in detail and the block diagrams of the programs are shown.