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Home / Equine Research Bank / Animals (Basel) / A Smart Textile Band Achieves High-Quality Electrocardiogram...
Animals : an open access journal from MDPI2022; 12(23); 3254; doi: 10.3390/ani12233254

A Smart Textile Band Achieves High-Quality Electrocardiograms in Unrestrained Horses.

Abstract: Electrocardiography (ECG) is an essential tool in assessing equine health and fitness. However, standard ECG devices are expensive and rely on the use of adhesive electrodes, which may become detached and are associated with reduced ECG quality over time. Smart textile electrodes composed of stainless-steel fibers have previously been shown to be a suitable alternative in horses at rest and during exercise. The objective of this study was to compare ECG quality using a smart textile girth band knit with silver and carbon yarns to standard adhesive silver/silver chloride (Ag/AgCl) electrodes. Simultaneous three-lead ECGs were recorded using a smart textile band and Ag/AgCl electrodes in 22 healthy, mixed-breed horses that were unrestrained in stalls. ECGs were compared using the following quality metrics: Kurtosis (k) value, Kurtosis signal quality index (kSQI), percentage of motion artifacts (%MA), peak signal amplitude, and heart rate (HR). Two-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparison tests was conducted to compare each metric. No significant differences were found in any of the assessed metrics between the smart textile band and Ag/AgCl electrodes, with the exception of peak amplitude. Kurtosis and kSQI values were excellent for both methods (textile mean k = 21.8 ± 6.1, median kSQI = 0.98 [0.92−1.0]; Ag/AgCl k = 21.2 ± 7.6, kSQI = 0.99 [0.97−1.0]) with <0.5% (<1 min) of the recording being corrupted by MAs for both. This study demonstrates that smart textiles are a practical and reliable alternative to the standard electrodes typically used in ECG monitoring of horses.
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Publication Date: 2022-11-23 PubMed ID: 36496775PubMed Central: PMC9740902DOI: 10.3390/ani12233254Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This research explores the effectiveness of using a smart textile band for capturing electrocardiograms in horses without restraint, and finds it is a practical and reliable alternative to traditional adhesive electrodes.

Introduction and Background

  • The study’s primary focus is electrocardiography (ECG), a crucial tool in evaluating a horse’s health and fitness.
  • The conventional process of recording ECGs involves using adhesive electrodes, which have a few drawbacks: they can easily come off, are expensive, and ECG quality diminishes over time.
  • Previous research has indicated that smart textile electrodes made of stainless-steel fibers could serve as an effective alternative for these horses at rest and in motion.

Objective of the Study

  • The research aims to examine the ECG quality captured by a smart textile girth band (knitted with silver and carbon yarns) and compare it with the quality of ECG readings taken using standard adhesive silver/silver chloride (Ag/AgCl) electrodes.

Methods

  • A total of 22 healthy horses of mixed breeds, unrestrained in their stalls, had their ECGs captured simultaneously using both the smart textile band and Ag/AgCl electrodes.
  • The quality of ECG was evaluated based on several factors: the Kurtosis (k) value, the Kurtosis signal quality index (kSQI), the percentage of motion artifacts (%MA), the peak signal amplitude, and the heart rate (HR).
  • To compare each metric, a two-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparison tests was carried out.

Findings

  • No significant differences were observed in the metrics assessed between the smart textile band and Ag/AgCl electrodes, except for peak amplitude.
  • Both methods scored excellently on the kurtosis and kSQI values, with fewer than 0.5% (<1 min) of the recording being corrupted by Motion Artifacts (MAs).

Conclusion

  • The research shows that smart textiles are a practical and reliable alternative to the standard electrodes typically used in ECG monitoring of horses, overcoming the common issues associated with adhesive electrodes, such as cost, detachment, and reduced quality over time.

Cite This Article

APA
McCrae P, Spong H, Rutherford AA, Osborne V, Mahnam A, Pearson W. (2022). A Smart Textile Band Achieves High-Quality Electrocardiograms in Unrestrained Horses. Animals (Basel), 12(23), 3254. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12233254

Publication

Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
ISSN: 2076-2615
NlmUniqueID: 101635614
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 12
Issue: 23
PII: 3254

Researcher Affiliations

McCrae, Persephone
  • Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada.
Spong, Hannah
  • Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada.
Rutherford, Ashley-Ann
  • Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada.
Osborne, Vern
  • Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada.
Mahnam, Amin
  • Department of Research and Development, Myant Inc., Toronto, ON M9W 1B6, Canada.
Pearson, Wendy
  • Department of Animal Biosciences, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON N1G 2W1, Canada.

Conflict of Interest Statement

Authors P.M., H.S. and A.-A.R. hold Mitacs Accelerate fellowships at Myant Inc., the company that produces the textile girth band utilized in this study. A.M. is employed by Myant Inc. No fees were received for the data collection, analysis, or preparation of this manuscript.

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Citations

This article has been cited 6 times.
  1. McCrae P, Spong H, Golestani N, Mahnam A, Bashura Y, Pearson W. Validation of an Equine Smart Textile System for Heart Rate Variability: A Preliminary Study. Animals (Basel) 2023 Feb 1;13(3).
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