6533b829fe1ef96bd1289cdf

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Evaluation of international standards for ECG-recording and storage for use in tele-medical services

subject

description

This report is written to clarify which of the international standards for ECG recordings that can be used in tele-medical services, where the recordings should be transmitted by wireless telecommunication facilities and finally stored as information integrated into the patients Electronic Health Record (EHR). Some principals for recording, transmission and storage of digital vital signs parameters are highlighted and important aspects of wireless communication of recorded signals from biomedical sensors are described, in order to understand the significance and differences in the storing formats to be used. Even if most of the relevant standards are not yet ratified (the last meeting in ISO TC 251 WH6 was held in October 2005), the actual international standards SCP-ECG, MFER, FDAXML and DICIOM are defined and already widely adopted. In this report, these standards are briefly described and evaluated with respect to possible use in tele-medical services, and recommendations are given in order to obtain a reliable and secure communication solution. Requirements for integration of the ECG file formats into the EHR are briefly described, and it is given some recommendations for actual standards to be used in future solutions.