Practice Test Geeks(AMCA) American Medical Certification Association Practice Test
← All AMCA Flashcard Decks

EKG / Electrocardiography Flashcards

6 cards from real AMCA practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 6 EKG / Electrocardiography flashcards as text

  1. How many leads are recorded in a standard 12-lead ECG?

    Answer: 12

    A 12-lead ECG records 12 electrical views of the heart (I, II, III, aVR, aVL, aVF, and V1–V6), even though only 10 electrodes are physically placed on the patient.

  2. Which ECG lead is placed on the fourth intercostal space at the RIGHT sternal border?

    Answer: V1

    V1 is placed at the fourth intercostal space to the right of the sternum. V2 mirrors it on the left side, and the remaining precordial leads continue across the chest.

  3. A patient's ECG shows a sawtooth pattern at approximately 300 bpm with no discernible P waves. This finding is most consistent with:

    Answer: Atrial flutter

    Atrial flutter characteristically produces a sawtooth (flutter wave) baseline at ~250–350 bpm. Atrial fibrillation produces an irregularly irregular baseline, while ventricular fibrillation is a chaotic, life-threatening rhythm.

  4. Somatic tremor artifact on an ECG tracing is MOST likely caused by:

    Answer: Patient movement or muscle activity

    Somatic tremor artifact results from skeletal muscle movement — the patient shivering, trembling, or moving during recording. Asking the patient to lie still and relax resolves this artifact.

  5. Which interval on an ECG represents the total time for ventricular depolarization AND repolarization?

    Answer: QT interval

    The QT interval spans from the start of ventricular depolarization (Q wave) through the end of repolarization (T wave). A prolonged QT interval raises the risk of dangerous arrhythmias such as Torsades de Pointes.

  6. When a limb lead electrode falls off mid-recording, the BEST immediate action is to:

    Answer: Stop the recording, reattach the electrode, and retake the tracing

    A detached electrode creates lead-off artifact, rendering that lead's data invalid. The correct action is to stop, reattach the electrode with fresh gel if needed, ensure good skin contact, and repeat the tracing to ensure a clean, diagnostic-quality recording.