Abstract
This is a practical experiment on ECG with regards to human physiology. The experiment was intended to achieve one primary goal: equip the learner with vital skills pertinent in making rational decisions anchored on scientifically proven facts. The alchemist recruited study participant from both sexes with varying levels of nutritional statuses and physical activities. The foods consumed by each participant were recorded. The results indicated that those who took caffeinated drinks positively correlated to emission of rapid ECG signals demonistrated by the ECG readings.
Introduction
The heart is a fundamental organ in sustaining life. It contracts at regular and perpetual intervals throughout life with rates varying between 60 and 80 (Drake et al. 178). Despite the abundance of nerve cells in the heart region, they have no role in the initiation of heart rates. Without the functionality of sympathetic and the parasympathetic nerves, the heart can still beat as long as there is an adequate supply of oxygen and critical nutrients.
I am an individual with vast interests, but I have always remained fascinated by the ability of the heart to contract by itself with no stimulation. My fascination in the functionality of the heart goes back to the 7th grade when I stumbled over my elder brother’s biology assignments on the structure and functionality of the heart. I once asked him to explain it to me. He said a lot of staff I couldn’t understand then, but the only thing that caught my attention is the self-sustenance of the contraction of the heart. My focus on the heart and other body systems grew sharper when my little brother underwent a heart surgery.
The primary purpose of this experiment is to equip the learner with vital skills pertinent in making rational decisions anchored on scientifically proven facts. Supporting the primary are the following specific goals:
Materials Used and Procedures
Materials Used:
BIOPAC electric lead set (SS2L)
BIOPAC disposable vinyl electrodes (EL503), six electrodes per unit
BIOPAC electrode gel (GEL 1) and abrasive bad (EL PAD) or skin cleanser
Procedure Followed:
In setting up the experiment, the computer was turned on with the desktop appearing on the screen. Then, the MP30 data acquisition was turned on to help record the data.
Subjects were asked to remove all clothes and jewelry from the area of attachment to the electrodes. With the participant lying in a supine position on a clean lab working surface, the point of electrode attachment was cleaned using paper towels soaked in alcohol.
The electrodes were attached to the cleaned spot and plugged into channel two of the MP30 at a distance with minimal tension to ensure an accurate reading of the ECG signal.
After recording segment 1, each participant was asked to sit in a chair with their arms relaxed on the armrests
In reading segment 2, when the subjects were still relaxed, I clicked ‘Resume’ to record the variation of the heart rate. The subjects were asked to remain calm to avoid any possible interruption of the ECG signal.
In recording segment three, I asked the subjects to exhale and inhale in circles after ‘Resuming,' running the clock for 20 seconds beginning with the first inhale movement following the exhale motion, I recorded the ‘exhale’ and ‘inhale’ interfaces
Results
There was a total of 54 participants in the current experiment with more women than men. After examining recordings all the study subjects, I noted numerous interesting trends about the measurement of ECG activities. First, participants with a history of regular intake of caffeinated products and good nutrition status with regular physical activity showed steady recording of ECG signal (Lee 29). This was consistent with the postulations made earlier. This proved that the electric currents associated with and generated with cardiac cycle could be noticeable at the surface of the following amplification and recording of events of the cardiac cycle. The electric current associated with and generated by the cardiac cycle is measurable if electrodes are placed on the skin surface where they can detect the heart beats. This is one of the approaches used in cardiology.
On top of that brain's voluntary control of muscle functionality, there are various critical mechanisms via which this involuntary occurrence is controlled. One of the many reasons this mechanism stands out is the self-sustenance of the heart with no support from the nervous system. This involuntary activity is easily demonstrable without the functionality of the sympathetic and the parasympathetic nerves; the heart can still beat as long as it has an adequate supply of oxygen and critical nutrients (Dixon et al. 158).
Discussions
As previously mentioned, the heart is an auto-excitatory organ. Action potentials are started impulsively at steady intervals in specified cells known as the pacemaker cells. These cells are arrayed in a network that facilitates signals to be relayed throughout the myocardium from the point of source. Four primary frameworks are located within the conduction web. The sinoatrial synchronizes nodes (SA node) that are located in the right atrial wall adjacent to the junction for the superior vena cava which as has pacemaker cells that undertake impulsive depolarization at a faster rate compared to any of the other pacemaker structures in the heart. Consequently, the SA node regulates the principal tempo for heart contraction (the sinus rhythm), and as it is often denoted to as the pacemaker of the heart.
Action potentials stemming from the SA node are relayed spontaneously through both atria tracts of pacemaker cells situated in the medial wall of the right atrium, adjacent to the junction of the right ventricle. The AV node comprises of the solitary pacemaker cells that originate out of the ventricles, as such, ordinarily electrical signals starting in the SA node and spreading through the atria can only be shepherded to the ventricles via this structure. The pacemaker cells in the AV node do possess very minute conduction velocities. Therefore, electrical signals transit through this section very slowly. When the signal passes via the AV node, it is transported to a structure called the atrioventricular bundle (AV bundle), which directs the signal via the interventricular septum in the direction of the apex of the heart. The signals moving back and forth are recorded in the form of ECG (Crameri, R. M., et al. 365).
Work Cited
Crameri, R. M., et al. "Myofibre damage in human skeletal muscle: effects of electrical stimulation versus voluntary contraction." The Journal of physiology583.1 (2007): 365-380.
Dixon, Anna MR, et al. "Compressed sensing system considerations for ECG wireless biosensors." Biomedical Circuits and Systems, IEEE Transactions on 6.2 (2012): 156-166.
Drake, Janessa DM, and Jack P. Callaghan. "Elimination of electrocardiogram contamination from electromyogram signals: an evaluation of currently used removal techniques." Journal of electromyography and kinesiology 16.2 (2006): 175-187.
Lee, Stephen, and John Kruse. "Biopotential electrode sensors in ECG/EEG/ systems." Analog Devices 200 (2008).
