Orderly display of limb lead ECGs raises Chinese intern’s diagnostic accuracy when determining frontal plane QRS axis

Abstract

Background: There is limited information on whether the orderly display of limb lead ECGs (electrocardiograms) can facilitate students to determine frontal plane QRS complex wave electrical axis.Objectives: The study investigated whether the orderly display of limb lead ECGs can raise Chinese undergraduate intern’s diagnostic accuracy when determining frontal plane axis.Design: A total of 147 fifth-year undergraduate interns aged between 21 and 25 years were randomly arranged into 2 groups: one group was given classically displayed ECGs of limb leads while the other group was given orderly displayed ECGs of limb leads. They were then taught to determine frontal plane axis with one of the above displays. The intern’s diagnostic accuracy and time used were measured.Results: After teaching, the orderly display can more effectively raise diagnostic accuracy when determining axis as compared to the classical display (76.65 ± 23.16% vs. 68.88 ± 23.21%, P < 0.05), although diagnostic accuracy in axis determination was improved in both groups as compared to the axis determination at baseline (all P < 0.05).Conclusions: Orderly display of limb lead ECGs may raise Chinese intern’s diagnostic accuracy when determining frontal plane axis.

Surfing the clinical trials of ECG teaching to medical students: A systematic review

“…Searching in the databases, 861 titles and abstracts were retrieved. After removing the duplicates and screening the remaining studies, 23 articles[ 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 ] were included in the present study [ Figure 1 ]. One study[ 7 ] was the follow-up assessment of previously published data.…”

“…In terms of global distribution, 6, 10, and 7 studies were from Asia,[ 9 11 12 21 25 33 ] Europe,[ 7 10 20 22 27 28 29 30 31 32 ] and North America,[ 8 13 14 19 23 24 26 ] respectively. An overview of the studies is available in Table 1 .…”

“…Most of the studies (22/23) were conducted after 2010. [ 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 30 31 32 33 ] Also, 19 studies’ populations were solely undergraduate medical students,[ 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 19 20 21 24 25 26 28 29 30 31 32 33 ] while four were mixed among different educational levels. [ 14 22 23 27 ] Peer teaching was used in seven studies,[ 7 10 12 20 24 30 31 ] revealing its benefits for both trainers and trainees.…”

Proposing a Lead Arrangement Option Based on Various Cardiac Diagnoses in Electrocardiogram Device Settings to Teach Medical Science Students

“…In this regard, an interventional study was performed in which a group of Chinese interns was provided with ECGs with routine lead arrangements based on the device's default settings to determine the heart axis; however, the other group was provided with ECGs with suitable lead arrangements for heart axis determination. The results indicated that the interns who received ECGs with suitable lead arrangements for heart axis determination made more accurate diagnoses (8). The order of leads' arrangement for various diagnoses could increase medical science students' and even health professionals' speed and accuracy.…”

“…According to the European Cardiovascular Association guidelines on the management of acute myocardial infarction patients (3), the interval between the first medical contact and recording of the first ECG is among the good indicators of care quality; it should not be longer than 10 minutes (4). Various studies have discussed the best teaching styles to improve ECG interpretation skills (5)(6)(7)(8). The ECG interpretation is complicated and is performed by various health professionals, such as nurses, physicians, paramedics, and especially cardiologists (5).…”