EKG machines are a popular item for used medical equipment dealers, primarily because of their reputation for durability and a long life span. However, with so many “like new” EKG machines available for purchase, customers often wonder which one to buy. Below are some facts about two of the bestselling used ECG/EKG machines from GE Healthcare:

The Mac6 Marquette EKG Machine

This 12-lead electrocardiogram system includes the manufacturer’s AM-4 or AM-5 acquisition module, fax transmission and full-page printouts, plus an optional roll cart. This popular machine offers the power of a computerized EKG, which acquires the signals from 12 leads in just 15 seconds, while simultaneously analyzing them with the GE Marquette’s 12SLT analysis program. This EKG machine also has powerful networking capabilities that allow it to receive and transmit ECG readings from other compatible ECG equipment. This advanced feature allows the portable and battery-operated Mac 6 to quickly send test results to a secondary location. The single button operation on this mobile EKG can be used to acquire, analyze, print and store ECG data easily.

The Mac 3500 Resting EKG Machine

Another in-demand item from GE Healthcare, the Mac 3500 was developed to provide a high-value performance in ECG testing for medical offices and clinics. Part of GE’s MAC family of medical equipment, it includes many of the features from previous models, making it an easy transition for medical staff. With an internal storage capacity of 50 ECGS, and a CT data guard to keep this data safe, this EKG machine can also communicate with others in data management via a wireless network or LAN connection. Highly compatible with other MAC systems, the 3500 has an integrated ECG acquisition module and built-in ECG analysis. It also comes with an integrated pump for the KISS system and a pacer spike display.
Find the best new and refurbished EKG machines online at Absolute Medical Equipment (http://www.absolutemed.com).

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Most heart patients do not take the time to learn about the anatomy of the heart, or how an EKG machine is designed to diagnose heart disease, but cardiologists have found that the more a patient understands about the way the heart works, the better equipped they are to ask the right questions. As a result, the American Heart Association strongly recommends that patients learn the mechanics of the heart and how the variables of lifestyle and medicine can impact its overall health.

The AHA describes the heart’s basic functions on its web site, starting with the heart’s four chambers and four valves.

* Two lower chambers are called the ventricles
* The two upper chambers are known as atria (plural) or atrium (singular)

The four valves of the heart are what make the blood flow through the heart as the muscle contracts, while ensuring that blood only flows in one direction. Each valve has flaps that respond to variances in pressure by opening and closing in sequence.

* The pulmonary valve, which is between the pulmonary artery and the right ventricle
* The tricuspid valve, which sits between the right ventricle and atrium
* The aortic valve, which is between the left ventricle and aorta
* The mitral valve is between the left ventricle and atrium

Since the heart works best when blood flow in an organized sequence of contractions within each chamber, physicians are trained to recognize when a patient’s heart is not functioning normally. An EKG machine can detect a cardiac arrhythmia, or abnormal heartbeat by recognizing a change in sequence from the heart’s normal electrical impulses. While some arrhythmias are nothing to worry about, others can put a patient at risk for life threatening blood clots. The only way for doctors to diagnose an arrhythmia is through regular EKG screenings.

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As the baby boom generation ages, more and more Americans are being diagnosed with heart disease every year. While coronary artery disease won’t completely go away, the American Heart Association offers very specific advice to keep the symptoms to a minimum and to prevent life-threatening events. For starters, the AHA advises anyone who is suffering from heart disease to get regular checkups at their doctor’s office, including a stress EKG test, a resting ECG exam and specific types of blood work.

What types of blood tests are necessary?

In addition to monitoring patients on EKG machines, doctors look for other risk factors by doing routine blood tests, including:

* Cholesterol check, which are used to detect a patient’s “bad” LDL cholesterol versus their good cholesterol
* Triglycerides
* Blood sugar levels

What is a “heart healthy” lifestyle?

Another way that regular checkups can help is by monitoring a patient’s lifestyle, such as smoking, alcohol consumption, exercise and eating habits. Checking in with a doctor regularly can ensure that a patient is following the American Heart Association’s guidelines for a heart-healthy lifestyle.

* Cutting back on saturated fats, trans fats and high-cholesterol foods and replacing them with a diet rich in vegetables, fruits and low-fat dairy products is recommended
* Regular exercise of at least 30 minutes per day, five days per week is recommended
* Quitting smoking is must when dealing with heart disease, and a doctor can recommend ways to do this with medications and other programs

Heart attacks and strokes can be avoided when a heart disease patient continues to get regular EKG checks, stress tests and blood tests while following the AHA’s tips for a heart healthy lifestyle.

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The latest innovation from GE Healthcare is the Mac400 portable electrocardiograph machine. This new compact EKG machine has been specifically designed to meet the changing needs of physicians, particularly those who work with patients in rural areas with little access to healthcare facilities. By using the same reliable ECG technology found it GE’s popular Marquette 12SL model, these machines lack nothing in terms of accuracy and quality.

Lightweight and easy to operate, the Mac400 is easy to configure to meet the needs of a patient, allowing for confident clinical decisions and cardiac care.

This new ECG machine recently debuted at the MEDICA trade show in Germany, and it has proven to be an instant sensation in the medical instrument industry. Orders have been pouring in from medical centers around the world, whose are in need of affordable diagnostic tools that known no boundaries. Unlike GE’s larger EKG machines, the Mac400 is targeted to a completely different set of buyers, which has caused the company to rethink its global product marketing strategy for the product.

Currently, this new portable EKG machine is manufactured in Bangalore India for Latin American and EMEA markets, and in Wuxi for Southeast Asia and Chinese markets. The equipment is certified for sale in 113 countries around the world.

GE Healthcare has become known for manufacturing technologically advanced equipment that has set the new standards in the industry. Through their consistent interaction with leading cardiologists, GE has impacted clinical guidelines through the development of cutting-edge EKG machines.

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As the heart beats, an electrical current is pumping through it as well. Were it not for this pulse, the heart would not be able to contract and push blood throughout the body. However, if the electrical signals in the heart are abnormal or out of synch, a person’s heart will not operate properly.
In 1877, the electrocardiograph, or EKG machine, was first created by Augustus Waller. The machine was designed to interpret and graph the electrical activity of the heart and measure the heart-rate and rhythm of the heart muscle.
An EKG machine works by strategically placing electrodes on the skin of the arms, legs and chest. Most of today’s machines use 12 to 15 separate electrodes, but there are some machines that only use three. As the patient’s heart beats, the electrodes transmit the signals of the heart to the EKG monitor, which translates the activity into a sequence of three waveforms. The waves are called P, T, and QRS. P waves are short and mark the activity in the heart’s atria. QRS waves measure the heart’s ventricular activity, and T waves are formed when the ventricles are renewed.
The test itself is painless and will not create any kind of electrical shock, but it is important for doctors to be aware of any medications a patient is taking. Some doctors will order an EKG stress test as well, which requires the patient to run on a treadmill while hooked up to machine’s electrodes. A stress test evaluates the heart’s activity while it is in more intense demand for oxygen.
Overall, EKG machines are a very valuable tool for doctors to diagnose the cause of chest pains, shortness of breath or heart palpitations. Doctors look for abnormalities in the duration, direction and amplitude of the waveforms, as well as the results of other tests, before offering a diagnosis.

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When a patient suffers from a stroke, the presence of atrial fibrillation (AF) is usually identifies as a major risk factor. Regular testing on an EKG machine can make all the difference in whether a patient is able to avoid such an outcome with EKG.

Originally thought to be an insignificant health problem, atrial fibrillation has the capacity to be a silent killer in many patients. Because a fluttering heart is also an irregular heart, the unsynchronized beating can result in a pooling or stagnation of the blood and the formation of blood clots, especially within the left atrium. When one of these blood clots breaks loose and travels throughout the body, it can block one of the blood vessels of the brain, cutting of the blood supply to a specific region and causing a stroke.

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Many healthcare professionals use EKG machines every day, but they know very little about how these diagnostic machines work. Learning more about the mechanics of EKG machines helps medical centers and clinicians make more educated decisions about the purchase and maintenance of these machines.

An electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) machine graphically records the electrical impulses of the heart muscles, and it is used to identify abnormal heart rhythms. Initially introduced in the early 1900’s, it has become an invaluable device in medical diagnostics.

Basically, EKG machines function by reading the electrical signals produced by the heart’s four chambers, which are made up of two pumps. The left pump takes blood from the lungs and distributes it to the rest of the body, while the right pump receives the blood returning from the body and sends it back to the lungs. When the atrium accepts incoming blood, it contracts, transferring the blood to the ventricles, which then pump blood away from the heart.

This whole pumping process depends on the heart’s sinotrial node, or pacemaker region, which is located in the right atrium. Here, an electrical impulse diffuses various ions across the cell’s membranes. It is this impulse that causes the atria to contract and push blood to the right and left ventricles. All of this occurs within milliseconds, so it is crucial that the heart’s impulses are functioning properly. By measuring the intensity and rhythm of these electrical impulses, an EKG machine can quickly recognize irregularities that may cause the heart to malfunction, or misfire.
Because it is able to recognize potential problems with the electrical impulses of the heart, regular EKG testing is an essential part a cardiac health assessment.

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Most adults over the age of 45 will undergo a series of heart screenings as part of an annual checkup. Testing may require the use of an EKG machine, but it may or may not include the use of an exercise stress test. In many cases, patients are not asked to take a stress test unless they have had symptoms of heart disease.

A stress test is one where a doctor learns how well the heart responds to exercise, and it is an essential part of a comprehensive cardiac exam. Patients are asked to walk on a treadmill while hooked up to an EKG machine. As the body starts working harder throughout the test, it also requires more oxygen. This means the heart will need to pump more blood. An exercise stress test will show if the blood supply in the arteries that lead to the heart is sufficient. It can also help determine how much exercise is appropriate for the patient.

Here is how a stress test works:

* The patient is first hooked up the electrical leads of an EKG machine
* Then, they are asked to walk in place slowly while on a treadmill
* The speed of the treadmill increases and the crossramp is tilted to simulate the effect of walking uphill
* Some patients may be asked to breath into a tube periodically during the test
* Immediately afterward, the patient is asked to lie down for a blood pressure check
* The doctor assesses the patient’s heart rate, breathing, EKG results and blood pressure, as well as the level of fatigue the patient feels during the test.

Using a stress test, doctors can determine the presence of coronary artery disease and predict the patient’s risk for a heart attack, among other things. If the results of the test are worrisome, the doctor may order additional tests, such as a nuclear stress test.

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As if the Apple iPad wasn’t already getting enough free publicity and hype; it is now being purchased in large quantities by hospitals too. In keeping with their reputation as early-adopters, California was the first state to embrace the new iPad as a device to help healthcare workers view EKG results, X-ray images and other electronic patient information.

The innovation behind the iPad makes it simple for doctors to use on patient rotations because it serves as a virtual desktop. Using application delivery software, physicians can have all patient information at their fingertips. Instead of writing notes on a chart, this innovation makes them more productive while keeping patient information accurate and up-to-date.

Patients will be amazed by the level of technology the iPad affords their doctors and specialists. Imagine being hooked up to an EKG machine and seeing the doctor view your results on his or her iPad in real-time.

Using an interface such as Citrix, these machines can capture the same data and records that are held within the hospital’s database of medical records. As a result, a doctor who is viewing your current EKG results will be able to compare them with other previous tests, such as echocardiograms and stress tests without leaving your side. And because your entire chart is also held within that same computer, the doctor can review other conditions you may have, or check for potential drug interactions.

If these new iPads prove to be successful for California hospitals, they will also distribute them to home health care workers, nurses, pharmacists and dieticians so they can all enter vital patient information in real-time.
Who knows how long it will be before the rest of the medical community catches on to the iPad craze, but the next time you are hooked up to an EKG machine you might want to ask your doctor about it.

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Because most heart attacks occur somewhere other than a hospital setting, emergency medical treatment is a crucial element in saving lives. For this reason, hospitals are always striving to improve their “door to balloon” ratio. According to some EMTs, the total time must be less than 90 minutes in order to ensure the best chance of survival.

Ninety minutes may sound like a lot of time, but not when you consider what this includes: the time for an ambulance to arrive, for emergency lifesaving procedures to be administered, and for the patient transferred into a mobile lifesaving unit and transported to the nearest hospital. Once on board, EMTs must stabilize the patient, hook them up to an EKG machine, and communicate with the hospital prior to their arrival.

Mobile EKG machines now play an important role in reducing the “door to balloon” time. Thanks to bluetooth technology, paramedics can now use a 12-lead EKG machine while the patient is en route to the hospital, and transmit the results directly to the hospital emergency room. This information gives emergency personnel a head start on preparing for the patient’s arrival. In a situation where every minute counts, the importance of mobile EKG units cannot be discounted.

One hospital with a real interest in improving their response time is Loyola University Hospital in Illinois. Their Heart Attack Rapid Response Team ensures that an emergency team is available at Loyola, 24/7. This team includes an intervening cardiologist at all times.

Through their partnership with emergency management services, Loyola hopes to dramatically shorten the time it takes them to respond – from the time the 911 call is placed until the heart attack patient arrives is gets the necessary treatment. In most cases, this requires a balloon catheter to be positioned in the blocked artery, which reopens the flow of blood through the heart. Being able to get a patient to this stage of treatment within three hours is crucial, because after that time the risks associated with the procedure may be too high. The sooner the clogged artery can be opened, the better the chance of survival.

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