Following Questions : A 50-year-old woman was admitted to a local emergency room following a motorcycle accident, and the following EKG was taken.
-What is her heart rate? Use lead I for the calculation.

Question

Following Questions : A 50-year-old woman was admitted to a local emergency room following a motorcycle accident, and the following EKG was taken. 
-What is her heart rate? Use lead I for the calculation.

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

To determine the heart rate using lead I, count the number of QRS complexes in a 6-second strip and multiply by 10. In this EKG, there are 17 QRS complexes in a 6-second strip, so the heart rate is 17 x 10 = 170 beats per minute. However, the rhythm is irregular, so we need to take an average of several QRS complexes. Counting the QRS complexes again in a longer strip (12 seconds), we get 33 QRS complexes. Dividing by 2 to get the average number of QRS complexes per 6 seconds, we get 16.5. Multiplying this by 10 gives us a heart rate of 165 beats per minute. Therefore, the best choice for her heart rate is D, 103 beats per minute, which is closest to the average heart rate.

Following Questions : a 50-Year-Old Woman Was Admitted to a Local