If your doctor has ordered you to have an EKG, there's nothing to be alarmed about. Your doctor just wants to make sure that the qrs complexes of your EKG traces are normal, and that you're not experiencing any heart-related medical issues. In most cases, your EKG will only take a few minutes, and they'll be able to perform the test right in the doctors' office. However, there may be times when the doctor has you go to the hospital, or to another doctors office for the test. That shouldn't give you cause for alarm. There are several reasons why the doctor may have you go elsewhere for the test. One of them is that your doctor doesn't have an EKG machine in their office. Before you go for the procedure, there are some steps you'll need to take to make sure you're properly prepared. Here's some information that will help you prepare for your EKG.

Write Down any Questions You Might Have

If you're scheduled for an EKG, you may have questions about the procedure. If you do, it's important that you write them down in a small journal. On the day of your appointment, take the journal with you. That way, you'll remember the questions that you had, and you'll have a place to write down the answers. Be sure to take your journal with you to your next appointment. That way you can ask any other questions that you've thought of, and you can write down the information your doctor gives you about the results of your test.

Be Prepared to Change into a Gown

During the EKG, wires will be attached to various parts of your body. Your doctor will need to get to those areas, which means they may ask you to slip into a hospital gown. To make changing into your gown easier, remember to wear loose-fitting clothing and slip-on shoes. If you're male, and you have a considerable amount of hair on your chest, you may want to shave prior to your appointment. The adhesive patches that will be attached to your chest can be uncomfortable to remove when they're attached to your hair.

Avoid Wearing any Lotions or Powders

As stated above, the wires will be attached to your body using adhesive patches. In order to get the most accurate results, the patches to should be securely attached to your body. To make sure the doctor doesn't have a problem attaching the adhesive patches, try to avoid wearing any lotions or powders on your body the day of your EKG.

To learn more, visit a website like qrs-biomedical.com.