It means "electrocardiogram".

I just had one.

I was expecting them to use metal electrodes and electrolytic gel, but 
actually the nurse got out a sheet of card, peeled about a dozen 
stickers off of it and started sticking them to me like I was a stamp 
book. :-| Obviously several around my ribcage, but oddly enough also 
around my various extremities... presumably so they have something to 
measure the potential difference against.

Having covered me in stickers, she then started attaching crocodile 
clips to them. (Personally, having crocodile clips that close to my 
nipples made me nervous!)

I didn't actually get to see the trace myself, but the nurse reconned it 
looked quite normal. Obviously I'm waiting for the doctor to have a 
chance to look at it for confirmation.

The fun part, of course, is *removing* all the stickers. It's amazing 
how far human skin can distort without ripping. o_O Amazing and 
uncomfortable! Of course, human hair is not nearly so elastic... >_<

The nurse tells me that for really hairy people, she has a whole box 
full of disposible razors. "It's really quite weird shaving some random 
Asian man's chest..."

Still, it could have been worse - if I needed an EEG, I really would 
have to shave. O_O

And fortunately, no blood samples required! :-D (Why do they always have 
to take blood samples from the most tender parts of your anatomy? Why 
not your finger or something? I'm sure it's the same blood...)

-- 
http://blog.orphi.me.uk/
http://www.zazzle.com/MathematicalOrchid*

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