Performance measures for algorithms to detect transient ischemic ST segment changes

The availability of the European ST-T database makes it possible to perform quantitative, reproducible performance tests of methods for detecting and measuring transient ischemic ST changes in the electrocardiogram (ECG). The authors propose an evaluation protocol and performance measurements for use with the database. They describe methods for evaluating the accuracy of ST episode detection, measurement of ischemia duration, and measurements of ST deviation. Bootstrap estimation is used to derive expected lower bounds on performance measures and to assess their utility as predictors of performance. These methods are illustrated by a case study in which an evaluation is presented of a two-channel algorithm for automated detection of ischemic ST episodes