I have spent a good chunk of this week learning about the heart how it works and what happens to cause it to stop working what we can see when it isn't working and what we can do to help it stay healthy or recover when it has been sick. There is a lot to learn. It is pretty interesting once you start to piece it all together. I am still working on that but I find pictures help me allot. I wish I had taken my anatomy and physiology classes more recently, I took them over 5 years ago and so I really have to review to get a grasp on some of the basics.Electrocardiogram
we are learning what a normal EKG looks like and what to suspect in the case of an abnormal one. The ST segment for instance should be isometric (neither elevated or depressed) if it is raised it indicates an infarction (the heart is not getting enough blood and cells are dying)
a tall pointy T wave indicates hyperkalemia (to much potasium). Learning these things makes me feel like I really am on the road to becoming a nurse.
