Ballistocardiography

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Ballistocardiography
MeSH D001450
HCPCS-L2 S3902

The ballistocardiograph (BCG) is a measure of ballistic forces generated by the heart. [1] The downward movement of blood through the descending aorta produces an upward recoil, moving the body upward with each heartbeat. [2] As different parts of the aorta expand and contract, the body continues to move downward and upward in a repeating pattern. [3] Ballistocardiography is a technique for producing a graphical representation of repetitive motions of the human body arising from the sudden ejection of blood into the great vessels with each heart beat. [4] It is a vital sign in the 1–20 Hz frequency range which is caused by the mechanical movement of the heart and can be recorded by noninvasive methods from the surface of the body. It was shown for the first time, after an extensive research work by Dr. Isaac Starr, that the effect of main heart malfunctions can be identified by observing and analyzing the BCG signal. [5] Recent[ when? ] work also validates BCG could be monitored using camera in a non-contact manner. [6]

Contents

One example of the use of a BCG is a ballistocardiographic scale, which measures the recoil of the persons body who is on the scale. A BCG scale is able to show a person's heart rate as well as their weight.[ citation needed ]

The term ballistocardiograph originated from the Roman ballista, which is derived from the Greek word ballein (to throw), a machine for launching missiles, plus the Greek words for heart and writing.[ citation needed ]

See also

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isaac Starr</span>

Isaac "Jack" Starr, known as the father of ballistocardiography, was an American physician, heart disease specialist, and clinical epidemiologist notable for developing the first practical ballistocardiograph. His early academic positions included being an assistant professor in pharmacology and later the first Hartzell Professor of Research Therapeutics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania as well as dean of the school from 1945 to 1948.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ioannis Pavlidis</span> Greek-American scholar

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Gari David Clifford is a British-American physicist, biomedical engineer, academic, and researcher. He is the Chair of Emory's Department of Biomedical Informatics and a Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Biomedical Informatics at Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology.

References

  1. Ballistocardiography at the U.S. National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
  2. Gordon, J. W. (April 1877). "Certain Molar Movements of the Human Body produced by the Circulation of the Blood". J Anat Physiol. 11 (Pt 3): 533–536. PMC   1309740 . PMID   17231163.
  3. Kim, Chang-Sei; Ober, Stephanie L.; McMurtry, M. Sean; Finegan, Barry A.; Inan, Omer T.; Mukkamala, Ramakrishna; Hahn, Jin-Oh (2016-08-09). "Ballistocardiogram: Mechanism and Potential for Unobtrusive Cardiovascular Health Monitoring". Scientific Reports. 6 (1): 31297. Bibcode:2016NatSR...631297K. doi:10.1038/srep31297. ISSN   2045-2322. PMC   4977514 . PMID   27503664.
  4. Ballistocardiography, a bibliography. NASA Technical Reports Server (Report). September 1965. hdl: 2060/19650025919 .
  5. Pinheiro, E.; Postolache, O.; Girão, P. (2010). "Theory and Developments in an Unobtrusive Cardiovascular System Representation: Ballistocardiography". The Open Biomedical Engineering Journal. 4: 201–216. doi: 10.2174/1874120701004010201 . PMC   3111731 . PMID   21673836.
  6. Shao, Dangdang; Tsow, Francis; Liu, Chenbin; Yang, Yuting; Tao, Nongjian (2017). "Simultaneous Monitoring of Ballistocardiogram and Photoplethysmogram Using a Camera". IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering. 64 (5): 1003–1010. doi:10.1109/TBME.2016.2585109. PMC   5523454 . PMID   27362754.

Further reading