Validation of interpretation of ST-elevation myocardial infarction using the smartphone based 12 lead electrocardiograms in comparison to the cardiologist-a cross sectional study, validation study, single-center study

Background: In patients experiencing an ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), rapid diagnosis leads to optimal clinical outcomes. Recent technology has provided access to a reliable means of obtaining an ECG reading through a smartphone application (app) that works with an attachment providing all 12-leads of a standard ECG system. We developed a 12-lead smartphone-based electrocardiogram (ECG) called “Spandan”, and an application to accurately assess the presence of STEMI in patients presenting with chest pain.  Objectives of study was to perform clinical observation studies on the patients screened for STEMIs and evaluate the variation in the diagnosis of STEMIs detected in both 12-lead gold standard and Spandan 12 lead ECG. Methods: This single-center study was carried out at Shri Mahant Indresh hospital (SMIH), Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India from April-2022 to November-2022. All patients (n=278) visiting the ECG room with symptoms of chest pain, shortness of breath and past history of cardiovascular disease at the department of cardiology of the SMIH, Dehradun were included in the study. Results: Mean age (SD) was 53.96±15.31 years. The male gender participants was 75.17%. 14.3% were STEMI patients as per the standard 12 lead interpretation, smartphone ECG interpreted 7.1% of the participants as STEMI and cardiologist interpreted nearly 15.4% of the participants of STEMI. Conclusions: This study confirmed the potential of a smartphone ECG for evaluation of STEMI and the feasibility of studying this technology further to define the diagnostic accuracy, limitations, and appropriate use of this new technology.