System and method for facilitating a cardiac rhythm disorder diagnosis with the aid of a digital computer
A system and method for facilitating a cardiac rhythm disorder diagnosis with the aid of a digital computer are provided. Cutaneous action potentials of a patient are recorded as electrocardiogram (ECG) data over a set time period. A set of R-wave peaks is identified within the ECG data and an R-R interval plot is constructed. A difference between recording times of successive pairs of the R-wave peaks in the set is determined. A heart rate associated with each difference is also determined. The pairs of the R-wave peaks and associated heart rate are plotted as the R-R interval plot. A diagnosis of cardiac disorder is facilitated based on patterns of the plotted pairs of the R-wave peaks and the associated heart rates in the R-R interval plot.
1. A system for facilitating a cardiac rhythm disorder diagnosis with the aid of a digital computer, comprising:
an electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring and recording device;
a download station adapted to retrieve cutaneous action potentials of a patient recorded over a set period of time by the ECG monitoring and recording device as ECG data;
a processor and memory within which code for execution by the processor is stored, wherein the processor:
identifies a set of R-wave peaks within the ECG data;
constructs an R-R interval plot, comprising:
determines a difference between recording times of successive pairs of the R-wave peaks in the set and to determine a heart rate associated with each difference;
plots each pair of the R-wave peaks obtained from the ECG monitoring and recording device based on the difference in recording times of that successive pair of the R-wave peaks and the associated heart rate for that successive pair of the R-wave peaks as the R-R interval plot; and
accentuates in the R-R interval plot spatial differences in frequently-occurring ranges of the heart rate and de-emphasizes the spatial differences in ranges of the heart rate where a deviation from the frequently-occurring ranges exists using a non-linear scale for the heart rate
a display comprising the R-R interval plot and one or more ECG plots each comprising at least a portion of the ECG data to facilitate diagnosis of a cardiac disorder of the patient based on patterns of the plotted pairs of the R-wave peaks and the associated heart rates in the R-R interval plot and the ECG plots.
2. A system in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the display displays the ECG plots as contextual data for the R-R interval plot.
3. A system in accordance with claim 2 , wherein each ECG plot comprises one of a near field view providing ECG data corresponding to the data for the R-wave peak pairs at a center of the R-R interval plot and an intermediate field view providing presentation of additional ECG data than the near field view.
4. A system in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the set of R-wave peaks is collected over a period of at least 40 minutes.
5. A system in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the processor selects the set of R-wave peaks by identifying a potential cardiac event within the ECG data and obtaining a portion of the ECG data corresponding to a time during, prior to, and after the potential cardiac event as the set of R-wave peaks.
6. A system in accordance with claim 5 , wherein the processor represents the potential cardiac event in the R-R interval plot via a temporal point of reference.
7. A system in accordance with claim 6 , wherein the display displays the temporal point of reference in the R-R interval plot in one of a center and another location.
8. A system in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the processor facilitates a diagnosis of one cardiac disorder to another cardiac disorder via the R-R interval plot.
9. A system in accordance with claim 1 , wherein the plot submodule plots the recording time difference along an x-axis of the R-R interval plot and the heart rate along a y-axis.
10. A method for facilitating a cardiac rhythm disorder diagnosis with the aid of a digital computer, comprising:
recording cutaneous action potentials of a patient as electrocardiogram (EGC) data over a set time period;
identifying a set of R-wave peaks within the ECG data;
constructing an R-R interval plot, comprising:
determining a difference between recording times of successive pairs of the R-wave peaks in the set;
determining a heart rate associated with each difference; and
plotting each pair of the R-wave peaks obtained from the ECG monitoring and recording device based on the difference in recording times of that successive pair of the R-wave peaks and the associated heart rate for that successive pair of the R-wave peaks as the R-R interval plot;
accentuating in the R-R interval plot spatial differences in frequently-occurring ranges of the heart rate, while de-emphasizing the spatial differences in ranges of the heart rate where a deviation from the frequently-occurring ranges exists using a non-linear scale for the heart rate;
displaying the R-R interval plot with one or more ECG plots each comprising at least a portion of the ECG data; and
facilitating diagnosis of a cardiac disorder of the patient based on patterns of the plotted pairs of the R-wave peaks and the associated heart rates in the R-R interval plot and the ECG plots.
11. A method in accordance with claim 10 , further comprising:
displaying the ECG plots as contextual data for the R-R interval plot.
12. A method in accordance with claim 11 , wherein each ECG plot comprises one of a near field view providing ECG data corresponding to the data for the R-wave peak pairs at a center of the R-R interval plot and an intermediate field view providing presentation of additional ECG data than the near field view.
13. A method in accordance with claim 10 , wherein the set of R-wave peaks is collected over a period of at least 40 minutes.
14. A method in accordance with claim 10 , further comprising:
selecting the set of R-wave peaks, comprising:
identifying a potential cardiac event within the ECG data; and
obtaining a portion of the ECG data corresponding to a time during, prior to, and after the potential cardiac event as the set of R-wave peaks.
15. A method in accordance with claim 14 , further comprising:
representing the potential cardiac event in the R-R interval plot via a temporal point of reference.
16. A method in accordance with claim 15 , further comprising:
displaying the temporal point of reference in the R-R interval plot in one of a center and another location.
17. A method in accordance with claim 10 , further comprising:
facilitating a diagnosis of one cardiac disorder to another cardiac disorder via the R-R interval plot.
18. A method in accordance with claim 10 , further comprising:
plotting the recording time difference along an x-axis of the R-R interval plot and the heart rate along a y-axis.
19. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing code for executing on a computer system to perform the method according to claim 10 .