How to count heart rate on ecg. Thus 6 10 seconds. The second qrs complex is between 75 and 60 beat per minute. If there is 1 large square between r waves the heart rate is 300 bpm.
Two large squares 150 bpm three large squares 100 bpm four 75 bpm. From the length of a heart beat on. The qrs complex is normally the tallest part of the pattern that repeats on the ecg.
Multiply the number of qrs complexes by six and the exact heart rate is 54 bpm. The result is heart rate. In addition the six second rule is great for counting heart rhythms that arent regular like atrial fibrillation atrial flutter sinus arrhythmia sinus rhythm with pvcs etc.
The width of a square on the ecg represents time the count method to determine the heart frequency. There are many ways you can count a heart rate on an ekg but i find the six second rule to be the easiest and fastest way. This heartbeat is between that around 65 beats per minute.
On the ekg locate a r wave that matches a thick line count the number of large squares to the next r wave. Using the distance between qrs complexes 1. 2 calculate large squares bw 2 successive r waves and divide it by 300 result is heart rate.
The ecg strip ease book warns always check a pulse to correlate with heart rate on an ecg determine the atrial heart rate by counting the number of one millimeter boxes between two consecutive p waves then divide the number by 1500. There is one p wave for each qrs complex thus the atrial rate is the same. If the heart rate is irregular count the number of qrs complexes on the ecg and multiply by 6 to obtain the average heart rate in bpm the ecg displays a period of 10 seconds.
This will allow you to determine what area of the ecg represents one heart beat. The heart rhythm is regular the paper speed is 25 mms standard in most countries all you do is find an r wave that is lined up with a large block on the ecg paper and count the number of large blocks between that cardiac cycle and the next.