Editor's Note: This article is the second in a series on medical wearable devices. Opinions stated here are solely those of the authors. ASA does not endorse these or any other products. While this is not a scientific product review with objective testing standards, and other studies of product efficacy may be available in addition to the ones mentioned here, we hope you'll enjoy the discussion on this emerging technology.
Electrocardiography (ECG/EKG) allows the visualization of electrical activity of the heart by measuring changes in voltage across two or more contact points on the body. Understanding a patient's heart rhythm preoperatively can be important for anticipating intraoperative cardiac and hemodynamic support requirements during the stress of surgery. Patients traditionally only got EKGs during hospital appointments or admissions, but they can now capture EKG information from portable devices at home or whenever they have symptoms.
While standard medical EKGs use...
