Electrocardiograph

/ɪˌlɛktroʊˈkɑrdioʊˌɡræf/ noun

Definition

The machine or instrument that records the electrical activity of the heart and produces an electrocardiogram.

Etymology

From electro- (electricity) + cardio- (heart) + -graph (device that records or writes). The device itself was developed in the early 1900s by Dutch physiologist Willem Einthoven, who won the Nobel Prize for this invention.

Kelly Says

Einthoven's electrocardiograph was so sensitive it could pick up electrical signals from across a patient's body—he had to use three different instruments just to get enough signal, and his invention literally changed how we diagnose heart disease forever.

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