Here is a comprehensive guide to 10 common heart diseases with their characteristic ECG changes and real ECG images:
10 Common Heart Diseases — ECG Changes & Images
1. 🫀 ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction (STEMI)
Pathophysiology: Complete occlusion of a coronary artery causes full-thickness myocardial ischemia and necrosis.
Key ECG Changes:
- Hyperacute T waves — tall, peaked T waves (earliest sign)
- ST-segment elevation ≥1 mm in ≥2 contiguous leads (convex/tombstone morphology)
- Reciprocal ST depression in opposing leads
- Pathological Q waves develop within hours (>25% of R wave height, >40 ms wide)
- T wave inversion in the affected territory post-infarction
Territory correlations:
- Anterior STEMI (LAD): V1–V4 elevation, reciprocal depression in II, III, aVF
- Inferior STEMI (RCA/LCx): II, III, aVF elevation, reciprocal depression in I, aVL
- Lateral STEMI: I, aVL, V5–V6
Anterolateral STEMI ECG (with comparison after treatment):
Inferior + Posterior STEMI ECG:
2. 🫀 Atrial Fibrillation (AF)
Pathophysiology: Chaotic disorganized atrial electrical activity from multiple re-entrant wavelets; the AV node conducts irregularly.
Key ECG Changes:
- Absent P waves — replaced by fine fibrillatory (f) waves, best seen in V1
- Irregularly irregular RR intervals — hallmark finding
- Narrow QRS (unless aberrant conduction or bundle branch block coexists)
- Ventricular rate can be rapid (AF with RVR) or controlled
- May show left ventricular hypertrophy voltage or non-specific ST-T changes
3. 🫀 Complete (Third-Degree) AV Block
Pathophysiology: Total failure of conduction between atria and ventricles; atria and ventricles beat independently.
Key ECG Changes:
- AV dissociation — P waves and QRS complexes bear no fixed relationship
- Regular P waves at a faster atrial rate
- Slow escape rhythm — junctional (narrow QRS, ~40–60 bpm) or ventricular (wide QRS, <40 bpm)
- Fixed PP and RR intervals separately, but no consistent PR interval
- Wide QRS escape if infra-nodal block; narrow QRS if junctional escape
4. 🫀 Left Ventricular Hypertrophy (LVH)
Pathophysiology: Increased left ventricular muscle mass (from hypertension, aortic stenosis, HCM) increases QRS voltage.
Key ECG Changes:
- High voltage — Sokolow-Lyon: S in V1 + R in V5/V6 ≥35 mm; Cornell: R in aVL + S in V3 >28 mm (men), >20 mm (women)
- LV strain pattern — ST depression + T wave inversion in lateral leads (I, aVL, V5–V6)
- Left axis deviation
- Prolonged QRS duration (though rarely >120 ms)
- Left atrial enlargement (broad, notched P waves)
5. 🫀 Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) Syndrome
Pathophysiology: An accessory bypass tract (Bundle of Kent) pre-excites the ventricle, bypassing the normal AV nodal delay.
Key ECG Changes:
- Short PR interval (<120 ms) — bypassing AV node delay
- Delta wave — slurred upstroke at the start of QRS (represents pre-excitation of ventricular myocardium)
- Widened QRS (>120 ms total due to delta wave)
- Secondary ST-T changes discordant to the delta wave
- Risk of rapid conduction into ventricles during AF → ventricular fibrillation
6. 🫀 Ventricular Tachycardia (VT)
Pathophysiology: Three or more consecutive beats originating from a ventricular focus at ≥100 bpm; often occurs in the setting of structural heart disease.
Key ECG Changes:
- Wide QRS complex (>120 ms), regular, rapid rhythm (100–250 bpm)
- AV dissociation — P waves are independent of QRS (pathognomonic)
- Fusion beats and capture beats (highly specific for VT)
- Concordance in precordial leads (all positive or all negative)
- Left axis or northwest axis deviation
- Brugada criteria and Vereckei algorithm used to differentiate from SVT with aberrancy
7. 🫀 Acute Pericarditis
Pathophysiology: Inflammation of the pericardium causes diffuse subepicardial irritation, unlike the localized ischemia of MI.
Key ECG Changes:
- Diffuse concave ("saddle-shaped") ST elevation in most leads except aVR and V1
- PR segment depression in most leads (most specific finding) — aVR shows reciprocal PR elevation
- Spodick's sign — downsloping TP segment
- No reciprocal ST depression (unlike MI)
- Stage evolution: ST elevation → ST normalization → T wave inversion → T wave normalization
- No pathological Q waves
8. 🫀 Pulmonary Embolism (PE)
Pathophysiology: Acute obstruction of the pulmonary vasculature causes right ventricular pressure overload and right heart strain.
Key ECG Changes:
- Sinus tachycardia — most common ECG finding
- S1Q3T3 pattern — large S wave in lead I, Q wave in lead III, inverted T wave in lead III
- Right axis deviation
- Incomplete or complete RBBB — from right ventricular strain
- T wave inversions in V1–V4 (right heart strain)
- P pulmonale — tall peaked P waves in inferior leads (right atrial enlargement)
- Atrial fibrillation may occur
9. 🫀 Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM)
Pathophysiology: Genetic (sarcomere mutation) disorder causing asymmetric myocardial hypertrophy (often septal), myofiber disarray, and diastolic dysfunction.
Key ECG Changes:
- LVH voltage criteria (high amplitude QRS)
- Deep, narrow "dagger-like" Q waves in lateral (I, aVL, V5–V6) and inferior (II, III, aVF) leads — from septal hypertrophy
- T wave inversions in lateral leads (strain pattern)
- Giant T wave inversions in precordial leads (especially apical HCM / Yamaguchi syndrome — V3–V5)
- Left atrial enlargement
- Short PR interval may be seen
- Ventricular arrhythmias and sudden death risk
10. 🫀 Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM)
Pathophysiology: Myocyte dysfunction leading to dilation and systolic failure of the left (and often right) ventricle; causes include idiopathic, viral, alcohol, and ischemic.
Key ECG Changes:
- Poor R wave progression — small R waves V1–V4, delayed or absent transition
- Low QRS voltage in limb leads (total amplitude <5 mm) from myocardial replacement/fibrosis
- Left bundle branch block (LBBB) — common; wide QRS with notched R in V5–V6
- Left atrial enlargement — broad, notched P wave (P mitrale) or biphasic P in V1
- Sinus tachycardia — compensatory
- Non-specific ST-T changes throughout
- Ventricular ectopy and NSVT common
- Atrial fibrillation frequently co-exists
Quick Reference Summary Table
| # | Condition | Key ECG Hallmarks |
|---|
| 1 | STEMI | ST elevation + reciprocal depression, Q waves, hyperacute T waves |
| 2 | Atrial Fibrillation | Absent P waves, irregularly irregular QRS |
| 3 | Complete AV Block | AV dissociation, independent P waves + slow escape rhythm |
| 4 | LVH | High voltage (Sokolow ≥35 mm), lateral strain pattern |
| 5 | WPW Syndrome | Short PR, delta wave, wide QRS |
| 6 | Ventricular Tachycardia | Wide complex regular tachycardia, AV dissociation |
| 7 | Pericarditis | Diffuse saddle ST elevation, PR depression, no Q waves |
| 8 | Pulmonary Embolism | S1Q3T3, sinus tachycardia, RBBB, RV strain |
| 9 | HCM | LVH + deep Q waves, giant T inversions (apical), strain |
| 10 | Dilated Cardiomyopathy | Low voltage, poor R progression, LBBB, LAE |
Clinical note: ECG interpretation should always be combined with clinical history, physical examination, biomarkers (troponin, BNP), and imaging (echocardiography). No single ECG finding is pathognomonic on its own.