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By Catherine Bennet Updated on 03/11/2021

EKG vs. ECG: What’s the difference?

EKGs and ECGs are the same thing and both stand for ‘electrocardiogram.’ The abbreviation EKG comes from the German “elektrokardiogramm.” The first time the term was used in the medical literature was in a 1900 article published by the Dutch physician and physiologist, Dr. Willem Einthoven, who developed the basics of the modern EKG. At the time, the language used in most scientific journals was German so the term was spelled with a K. The K has stuck in common parlance and despite the English spelling, we use the abbreviations EKG and ECG interchangeably now.

EKG vs ECG

An EKG allows your doctor to assess the electrical system of the heart. An EKG can help to diagnose abnormal heart rhythms, the presence of a blocked or narrowed coronary artery, a prior heart attack, and other cardiac electrical abnormalities. It can also be used to assess if a pacemaker is working properly.

EKGs are painless, non-invasive tests. To perform the test, electrode stickers are placed on your chest and attached via wires to a computer that records your EKG. An EKG takes a short snapshot of your heart rhythm. The entire test takes less than a minute.

EKG What is EKG

A full EKG, sometimes called “12 lead EKG”, can only be performed in a doctor’s office or hospital. The 12 leads refer to the 12 vectors of electricity that are measured by a full EKG and allow us to assess the entire electrical system of your heart. However, over the last few years a few companies, most notably Apple and Kardia, have developed validated technologies that allow patients to trace an EKG with a smaller subset of leads. You can discuss with your doctor if having one of these technologies on hand at home would be beneficial for your cardiac care.

Learn more about EKGs in our office here: https://cardiocarellc.com/services/diagnostic-testing/ekgs/

Learn about the Apple EKG app here: https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208955

Learn about AliveCor from Karida here: https://www.alivecor.com/

Catherine Bennet, MD

Dr. Bennet is board-certified in cardiology. She is among the top rated cardiologists in the area and sees patients with all cardiac conditions. Dr. Bennet received her medical degree from Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and completed her residency training in internal medicine at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. She has published multiple peer reviewed articles and presented at national meetings on topics in international cardiology and quality improvement in cardiovascular care delivery. She is an active member and fellow of the American College of Cardiology (ACC) and is on the board of the Maryland Chapter of the ACC.