How do smart watches, sports trackers and other gadgets measure heart rate? Part 2

What is called pulse

When the heart muscles contract, the walls of the blood vessels vibrate in a certain rhythm and with a certain force.
These fluctuations are called the pulse, an indicator of the work of the heart and the condition of the blood vessels. Normally, there should be equal intervals between pulsations. Among the causes of disturbances in the rhythm of oscillations of the vascular walls:

• heart pathology
• problems with blood vessels
• endocrine system diseases
• intoxication
• tachycardia of a heavy smoker
• heavy physical activity
• trauma with blood loss
• acute cold
• severe stress, etc.

Any disturbance in heart contractions signals that something is wrong in the body. You should definitely consult a doctor. But first of all, learn how to measure your pulse correctly.

Pulse is an indicator of the work of the heart and blood vessels.

Providing first aid to victims

Photo: Victor Vasenin

The manual of the Ministry of Emergency Situations of Russia will help participants in road accidents and eyewitnesses of a heart attack in a sick person not to get confused in a difficult situation. The book also lists algorithms for providing first aid for traumatic injuries and emergency conditions. Such as external bleeding from injuries, abdominal wounds, penetrating chest wounds, bone fractures and thermal burns, as well as hypothermia and frostbite. Readers will learn how to behave correctly in order to actually help someone who has been electrocuted, or has swallowed water in a river, or perhaps has become a victim of serious poisoning. The manual also contains recommendations for help in case of injuries and chemical burns of the eyes, bites of poisonous snakes, insects, as well as heat and sunstroke.

Priority actions when providing first aid to sick and injured people

First of all, assistance is provided to those who are suffocating, who have profuse external bleeding, a penetrating wound to the chest or abdomen, who are unconscious or in serious condition.

Only after stopping external bleeding and restoring spontaneous breathing and heartbeat, do the following:

Procedure for performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation

2.1. Rules for determining the presence of a pulse, spontaneous breathing and the reaction of the pupils to light (signs of “life and death”)

Proceed to resuscitation only if there are no signs of life (points 1-2-3).

2.2. Sequence of artificial ventilation

2.3. Rules for closed (indirect) cardiac massage

The depth of chest compression should be at least 3-4 cm, 100-110 compressions per minute.

Closed cardiac massage should only be performed on a hard surface!

2.4. Removal of a foreign body from the respiratory tract using the Heimlich maneuver

Signs: The victim is suffocating (convulsive breathing movements), unable to speak, suddenly becomes cyanotic, and may lose consciousness.

Children often inhale parts of toys, nuts, and candies.

IF, DURING RESUSCIVATION, INDEPENDENT BREATHING, HEARTBEAT DOES NOT RECOVER, AND THE PUPILS REMAIN WIDE FOR 30-40 MINUTES AND THERE IS NO HELP, IT SHOULD BE CONSIDERED THAT THE BIOLOGICAL DEATH OF THE VICTIM HAS OCCURRED.

Algorithms for providing first aid to victims of traumatic injuries and emergency conditions

3.1. First aid for external bleeding

Pressure points of arteries

3.2. Methods for temporarily stopping external bleeding

Clamp the bleeding vessel (wound)

Finger pressure on the artery is painful for the victim and requires great endurance and strength from the person providing assistance. Before applying a tourniquet, do not release the pinched artery so that bleeding does not resume. If you start to get tired, ask someone present to press your fingers on top.

Apply a pressure bandage or pack the wound

Apply a hemostatic tourniquet

A tourniquet is a last resort measure to temporarily stop arterial bleeding.

The duration of the tourniquet on the limb is 1 hour, after which the tourniquet should be loosened for 10-15 minutes, having previously clamped the vessel, and tightened again, but not more than for 20-30 minutes.

Stopping external bleeding with a tourniquet (a more traumatic way to temporarily stop bleeding!)

3.3. First aid for abdominal wounds

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance and ensure that the victim is transported to a medical facility.

3.4. First aid for penetrating chest wounds

Signs: bleeding from a wound on the chest with the formation of blisters, air being sucked through the wound.

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance and ensure that the victim is transported to a medical facility.

3.5. First aid for nosebleeds

Causes: nose injury (blow, scratch); diseases (high blood pressure, decreased blood clotting); physical stress; overheating.

If the bleeding does not stop within 15-20 minutes, refer the victim to a medical facility.

3.6. First aid for broken bones

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance.

3.7. Rules for immobilization (immobilization)

Immobilization is mandatory. Only if there is a threat to the injured rescuer is it permissible to first move the injured person to a safe place.

3.8. First aid for thermal burns

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance. Ensure that the victim is transported to the burn department of the hospital.

3.9. First aid for general hypothermia

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance.

If there are signs of your own hypothermia, fight sleep, move; use paper, plastic bags and other means to insulate your shoes and clothes; look for or build a shelter from the cold.

3.10. First aid for frostbite

In case of frostbite, use oil or Vaseline; rubbing frostbitten areas of the body with snow is prohibited.

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance and ensure that the victim is transported to a medical facility.

3.11. First aid for electric shock

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance.

3.12. First aid for drowning

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance.

3.13. First aid for traumatic brain injury

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance.

3.14. First aid for poisoning

3.14.1. First aid for oral poisoning (when a toxic substance enters the mouth)

Call an ambulance immediately. Find out the circumstances of the incident (in case of drug poisoning, present the medicine wrappers to the arriving medical worker).

If the victim is conscious

If the victim is unconscious

Call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance and ensure that the victim is transported to a medical facility.

3.14.2. First aid for inhalation poisoning (when a toxic substance enters the respiratory tract)

Signs of carbon monoxide poisoning:

pain in the eyes, ringing in the ears, headache, nausea, vomiting, loss of consciousness, redness of the skin.

Signs of household gas poisoning:

heaviness in the head, dizziness, tinnitus, vomiting; severe muscle weakness, increased heart rate; drowsiness, loss of consciousness, involuntary urination, pale (blue) skin, shallow breathing, convulsions.

Call an ambulance.

Algorithms for providing first aid for acute diseases and emergencies

4.1. First aid for a heart attack

Signs:

acute pain behind the sternum, radiating to the left upper limb, accompanied by “fear of death,” palpitations, shortness of breath.

Call and instruct others to call an ambulance. Provide fresh air, unfasten tight clothes, and give a semi-sitting position.

4.2. First aid for damage to the organs of vision

4.2.1. If foreign bodies enter

The victim should only move hand in hand with an accompanying person!

Ensure that the victim is transported to a medical facility.

4.2.2. For chemical burns to the eyes

The victim should only move hand in hand with an accompanying person!

In case of acid contact

You can wash your eyes with a 2% solution of baking soda (add baking soda to a glass of boiled water on the tip of a table knife).

In case of contact with alkali

you can wash your eyes with a 0.1% solution of citric acid (add 2-3 drops of lemon juice to a glass of boiled water).

4.2.3. For eye and eyelid injuries

The victim should be in a lying position

Ensure that the victim is transported to a medical facility.

4.3. First aid for poisonous snake bites

Limit the mobility of the affected limb.

Ensure that the victim is transported to a medical facility for administration of anti-snake serum.

4.4. First aid for insect bites

If an allergic reaction occurs, consult a doctor. Monitor the patient's condition until a medical professional arrives.

4.5. First aid for fainting

Signs:

pallor, sudden short-term loss of consciousness.

If consciousness does not recover for more than 3-5 minutes, call (on your own or with the help of others) an ambulance.

4.6. First aid for heatstroke (sunstroke)

Signs:

weakness, drowsiness, thirst, nausea, headache; increased breathing and increased temperature, loss of consciousness are possible.

If these signs are absent, proceed with cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Call (by yourself or with the help of others) an ambulance

.

How to measure your pulse manually

1. The subject of measurement is the number of pulsations per minute, at rest. For more accurate calculations, use a stopwatch.
2. Manual pulse measurements are usually taken from the inside of the wrists of the left and right hands, more precisely, in the area of ​​the radial artery, close to the skin - at the base of the thumb.
3. With rhythmic pulsations, you can count how many beats (oscillations of the vascular walls) there were in 30 seconds and double the result.
4. For non-rhythmic pulsations, it is recommended to count the beats for a minute.
5. In some cases, it is possible to measure the pulse in the area of ​​other arteries located close to the skin on the neck (posterior edge of the sternocleidomastoid muscle), temple, thigh, elbow, under the collarbone, in the groin at the edge of the pubis.

How to measure the pulse on your hand yourself

To independently measure your pulse on your arm you need:

1. Unbutton or remove clothing that is constricting your left arm.
2. Take a comfortable position in a chair or at a table (the left hand and forearm should have support, be closer to the heart, palm facing up).
3. With the fingers of your right hand, grasp the wrist joint of your left so that the index, middle and ring fingers are on top, and the thumb is on the bottom.
4. A pulsation will be felt under three fingers closer to the base of the palm and thumb of the left hand.
5. Turn on the stopwatch and count the beats for 1 minute.

Watch this video on how to correctly measure your own pulse:

On which hand?

It makes no difference which hand you use to measure your pulse. In most people it is completely identical on both upper limbs. If there are differences in filling or frequency, this may be a sign of severe vascular disease:

• atherosclerotic changes in arteries;
• aneurysm (protrusion of the wall) of the aorta;
• aortic pathologies – narrowing above the valve, coarctation;
• arteritis (inflammation of the artery) Takayasu (pulselessness disease).

Method of assessing pulse for an adult

When studying the pulse of an adult, it is necessary to adhere to the method of sequential determination of characteristics:

• frequency (counting per minute);
• rhythmicity (the number of beats for every 10 seconds should be equal);
• filling (the pulse wave is clearly noticeable on the wrist);
• tension (reflects arterial tone);
• uniformity - all blows are of the same force.

If it's hard to find on your wrist

If it is difficult to find a pulse in the wrist, this is a sign of heart failure, low blood pressure, or narrowing of the arteries of the upper extremities. In this case, it is recommended to count the number of heartbeats in the neck (on the carotid artery) or on the chest under the left mammary gland.

Pulse measurement with a tonometer

You can conveniently and quickly measure fluctuations in the vascular walls using a special electronic tonometer, which displays blood pressure and pulse indicators on the screen. Depending on the type of model, it can be worn on the wrist or shoulder.

For an untrained adult, a normal heart rate is considered to be between 60 and 80 beats per minute.

It is necessary to strictly follow the instructions for the device. Regardless of the type of tonometer, when measuring your pulse, follow the following important rules:

• do calculations at rest, being relaxed
• take a sitting position
• empty your bladder beforehand
• an hour before measurement, do not consume caffeine, alcohol, or nicotine
• keep your elbow approximately at heart level
• If you want to measure your pulse again, do so after at least 5 minutes.

Remember that when a serious illness is detected, the doctor will not limit himself to simply counting the pulse and recommends more in-depth examinations, for example, undergoing an electrocardiography procedure or doing a so-called treadmill test, that is, a study of the functioning of the heart and blood vessels on a treadmill.

A tonometer will help you accurately determine your heart rate.

How to measure your pulse in 10 seconds

To measure your pulse in 10 seconds, you need:

1. Feel the pulse on the radial artery of the arm or carotid artery (on either side).
2. Start the stopwatch for 10 seconds.
3. Start counting from the first beat until the signal.

The result obtained must be multiplied by 6. This method is not suitable for determining the pulse rate in diseases, because the measurement error can be from 10 to 16 beats per minute. Athletes use this technique to find out whether the selected load corresponds to the training interval.

Normal heart rate in adults and children

Heart rate can depend not only on diseases, but also on many other factors. In particular, on gender and age, body weight and temperature, diet and even the environment. For example, people who are professionally involved in sports have a faster heart rate than untrained people; The pulse quickens in the afternoon and slows down at night.

In order for anyone to determine whether their pulse is normal, they should first take into account their age.

The norm for children is:

• in newborns - from 110 to 160 beats per minute
• in infants from 1 month to 1 year – from 100 to 150
• children from 3 to 8 years old – from 70 to 125
• children from 9 to 11 years old – from 60 to 100
• teenagers from 12 to 15 years old – from 55 to 95

in adults:

• up to 50 years – from 64 to 84
• up to 60 years – from 64 to 84
• after 60 – from 69 to 89

Slow and fast heartbeat

The heart muscle can contract at an increased (tachycardia) or decreased (bradycardia) rhythm. If the pulse does not correspond to the norm, there is no need to immediately sound the alarm: the reason may be not only in pathology, but also in the physiology of the female or male body. Thus, some increase in heart rate is observed when women reach menopause, or when estrogen levels decrease; slowing of the pulse - when taking certain medications.

Various physical and mental stress affect the heart rate, even the difficult digestion process after a heavy holiday dinner and the use of energy drinks. Typically, physiological causes of abnormal heart rate are temporary. After 45 minutes, the pulse readings can return to normal.

Record your heart rate readings on both hands - this will allow you to get more accurate data when measuring this indicator manually.

Clinical practice shows that the pulse often increases when the nervous system is damaged, cardiac pathology, or hormonal system disorders. It is possible that with high readings a tumor or some kind of infection develops in the body.

The pulse slows down if the body experiences intoxication, peptic ulcer disease, or increased intracranial pressure, myocardial infarction develops. Perhaps this signals a lack of thyroid hormones, organic damage to the heart, or poor oxygen supply to tissues.

Only a specialist can answer the question why your pulse is too fast or too rare. In any case, consult a doctor immediately if your pulse is abnormal:

• dyspnea
• my head is spinning
• fainting or presyncope
• heart pain
• vision problems

When playing sports, it is important to regularly measure your pulse.