Use of time-frequency representations to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio of the signal-averaged ECG

The signal-averaged electrocardiogram (SAECG) increases the signal-to-noise ratio of the electrocardiogram to recover low-level signals, such as ventricular late potentials. The authors present some preliminary results from the use of an optimal filter which can increase the signal-to-noise ratio of the SAECG more efficiently than signal averaging. The setting for the filter is the time-frequency plane. The optimal filter was tested on eight recordings, comparing signal averages performed on a 0.3-μV root-mean-square (RMS) noise endpoint with 64 beat averages before and after filtering. It was concluded that optimal filtering to enhance the SNR of the SAECG in the setting of the time-frequency plane is feasible