Algorithm for QA interval as an index of cardiac contractility from telemetered data

A multichannel signal processing system is described which is capable of computing the QA interval from bursts of electrocardiogram (ECG) and blood pressure (BP) telemetry data. The system is implemented with a multichannel transmitter, receiver, data acquisition board, and a personal computer to process the data. The algorithm for computing QA interval employs interpolation, Finite Impulse Response (FIR) filtering, ECG Q detection, diastole detection, and time correlation. Results are presented displaying the change in QA interval due to quinidine administration.