Basics of Biomedical Instrumentation

UNIT: 1
Bioelectric potentials are actually ionic voltages
produced as a result of the electrochemical activity
of certain special types of cells. Through the use of
transducers capable of converting ionic potentials
into electrical voltages, these natural monitoring
signals can be measured and results displayed in a
meaningful way to aid the physician in his diagnosis
and treatment of various diseases.
Bioelectric potentials are produced as a result of
electrochemical activity of a certain class of cells
called excitable cells.
The cell membrane is a very thin (7 to 15 nm)
lipoprotein complex that is essentially impermeable
to intracellular protein and other organic anions.
The permeability to potassium ion is approximately
50 to 100 times than its permeability to sodium ion.

The concentration difference creates a diffusion

gradient that is directed outward across the
membrane.
The factors influencing the flow of ions across the
membrane are (i) diffusion gradients, (ii) the
inwardly directed electric field, (iii) membrane
structure and (iv) active transport of ions against an
established electrochemical gradient.
RESTING AND ACTION POTENTIALS:
Certain types of cells within the body, such as nerve
and muscle cells, are encased in a semipermeable
membrane that permits some substances to pass
through the membrane while others are kept out.
Surrounding the cells of the body are the body
fluids. These fluids are conductive solutions
containing charged atoms known as ions. The
principal ions are sodium (Na+), potassium (K+), and
chloride (C-). The membrane of excitable cells
readily permits entry of potassium and chloride ions
but effectively blocks the entry of sodium ions.
Since the various ions seek a balance between the
inside of the cell and the outside, both according to
concentration and electric charge, the inability of
the sodium to penetrate the membrane results in
two conditions.
(i) The concentration of sodium ions inside the
cell becomes much lower than in the
intercellular fluid outside. Since the sodium
ions are positive, this would tend to make
 the outside of the cell more positive than
the inside.
(ii) In an attempt to balance the electric charge,
additional potassium ions, which are also
positive, enter the cell, causing a higher
concentration of potassium on the inside
than on the outside. This charge balance
cannot be achieved, however, because of
the concentration imbalance of potassium
ions. Equilibrium is reached with a potential
difference across the membrane, negative
on the inside and positive on the outside.
This membrane potential is called the resting
potential of the cell and is maintained until some
kind of disturbance upsets the equilibrium. Since
measurement of the membrane potential is
generally made from inside the cell with respect
to the body fluids, the resting potential of a cell is
given as negative.
Research investigators have reported measuring
membrane potentials in various cells ranging from
- 60 to - 100 mV.
A cell in the resting state is said to be polarized.
The individual excitable cell maintains a steady
electrical potential difference between its internal
and external environments. This resting potential
of the internal medium lies in the range -40 to-90,
relative to the external medium.
When a section of the cell membrane is excited
by the flow of ionic current or by some form of
externally applied energy, the membrane changes
its characteristics and begins to allow some of the
sodium ions to enter. This movement of sodium
ions into the cell constitutes an ionic current flow
that further reduces the barrier of the membrane
to sodium ions. The net result is an avalanche
effect in which sodium ions literally rush into the
cell to try to reach a balance with the ions
outside. At the same time potassium ions, which
were in higher concentration inside the cell during
the resting state, try to leave the cell but are
unable to move as rapidly as the sodium ions. As a
result, the cell has a slightly positive potential on
the inside due to the imbalance of potassium
ions.
This potential is known as the action potential and
is approximately + 20 mV.
A cell that has been excited and that displays an
action potential is said to be depolarized; the
process of changing from the resting state to the
action potential is called depolarization.
By an active process, called a sodium pump, the
sodium ions are quickly transported to the
outside of the cell, and the cell again becomes
polarized and assumes its resting potential. This
process is called repolarization. The rate of
pumping is directly proportional to the sodium
concentration in the cell. The time scale for the
action potential depends on the type of cell
producing the potential. In nerve and muscle
cells, repolarization occurs so rapidly following
depolarization that the action potential appears
as a spike of as little as 1 m sec total duration.
Heart muscle, on the other hand, repolarizes
much more slowly, with the action potential for
heart muscle usually lasting from 150 to 300
msec.
The action potential is always the same for any
given cell. This is known as the all-or-nothing law.
The net height of the action potential is defined
as the difference between the potential of the
depolarized membrane at the peak of the action
potential and the resting potential.
Following the generation of an action potential,
there is a brief period of time during which the
cell cannot respond to any new stimulus. This
period, called the absolute refractory period, lasts
about 1 m sec in nerve cells.
Following the absolute refractory period, there
occurs a relative refractory period, during which
another action potential can be triggered, but a
much stronger stimulation is required. In nerve
cells, the relative refractory period lasts several
milliseconds.
For an axon of a given diameter, myelination
improves the conduction rate by a factor of
approximately 20.
PROPAGATION OF ACTION POTENTIALS:
When a cell is excited and generates an action
potential ionic currents begin to flow. This
process can, in turn, excite neighboring cells or
adjacent areas of the same cell.
The rate at which an action potential moves down
a fiber or is propagated from cell to cell is called
the propagation rate.
In nerve fibers the propagation rate is also called
the nerve conduction rate, or conduction velocity.
This velocity varies widely, depending on the type
and diameter of the nerve fiber.
The usual velocity range in nerves is from 20 to
140 meters per second (m/sec). Propagation
through heart muscle is slower, with an average
rate from 0.2 to 0.4 m/sec. Special time-delay
fibers between the atria and ventricles of the
heart cause action potentials to propagate at an
even slower rate, 0.03 to 0.05 m/sec.
THE BIOELECTRIC POTENTIALS:
To measure bioelectric potentials, a transducer
capable of converting ionic potentials and
currents into electric potentials and currents is
required. Such a transducer consists of two
electrodes, which measure the ionic potential
difference between their respective points of
application.
The designation of the waveform itself generally
ends in the suffix gram, whereas the name of the
instrument used to measure the potentials and
graphically reproduce the waveform ends in the
suffix graph.
ELECTRODES:
The measurement electrodes are simply electrical
terminals or contact points from which voltages
can be obtained at the surface of the body. The
purpose of the electrolyte paste or jelly often
used in such measurements might be assumed to
be only the reduction of skin impedance in order
to lower the overall input impedance of the
system. These conclusions, however, are incorrect
and do not satisfy the theory that explains the
origin of bioelectric potentials.
Devices that convert ionic potentials into
electronic potentials are called electrodes.
ELECTRODE THEORY:
The interface of metallic ions in solution with
their associated metals results in an electrical
potential that is called the electrode potential.
This potential is a result of the difference in
diffusion rates of ions into and out of the metal.
Equilibrium is produced by the formation of a
layer of charge at the interface. This charge is
really a double layer, with the layer nearest the
metal being of one polarity and the layer next to
the solution being of opposite polarity.
It is impossible to determine the absolute
electrode potential of a single electrode, for
measurement of the potential across the
electrode and its ionic solution would require
placing another metallic interface in the solution.
By international agreement, the normal hydrogen
electrode was chosen as the reference standard
and arbitrarily assigned an electrode potential of
zero volts.
Another source of an electrode potential is the
unequal exchange of ions across a membrane that
 is semipermeable to a given ion when the
membrane separates liquid solutions with
different concentrations of that ion.
An equation relating the potential across the
membrane and the two concentrations of the ion
is called the Nernst equation and can be stated as
follows:
E = - (RT/nF) ln(C1f1/C2f2)
Where R = gas constant (8.315 x 10'
ergs/mole/degree Kelvin)
T = absolute temperature, degrees Kelvin
n = valence of the ion (the number of electrons
added or removed to ionize the atom)
F = Faraday constant (96,500 coulombs)
C1,C2 = two concentrations of the ion on the two
sides of the membrane
f1f2 = respective activity coefficients of the ion on
the two sides of the membrane
1 standard volt equals 10^8 abvolts; therefore, to
convert the membrane potential into standard
volts, the entire equation must be multiplied by a
constant 10^-8. The activity coefficients, f1and f2,
depend on such factors as the charges of all ions in
the solution and the distance between ions.
The product, C1f1, of a concentration and its
associated activity coefficient is called the activity of
the ion responsible for the electrode potential.
In a very dilute solution the activity coefficient f
approaches unity, and the electrode potential
becomes a function of the logarithm of the ratio of
the two concentrations.
In electrodes used for the measurement of
bioelectric potentials, the electrode potential occurs
at the interface of a metal and an electrolyte,
whereas in biochemical transducers both
membrane barriers and metal-electrolyte interfaces
are used.
BIOPOTENTIAL ELECTRODES:
A wide variety of electrodes can be used to measure
bioelectric events, but nearly all can be classified as
belonging to one of three basic types:
1. Microelectrodes: Electrodes used to measure
bioelectric potentials near or within a single cell.
2. Skin surface electrodes: Electrodes used to
measure ECG, EEG, and EMG potentials from the
surface of the skin.
3. Needle electrodes: Electrodes used to penetrate
the skin to record EEG potentials from a local region
of the brain or EMG potentials from a specific group
of muscles.
In each case, an electrode potential is developed
across the interface, proportional to the exchange
of ions between the metal and the electrolytes of
the body. The double layer of charge at the
interface acts as a capacitor. The dc voltage due to
the difference in electrode potentials is called the
electrode offset voltage.
It has been found that, electrochemically , the
silver-silver chloride electrode is very stable. This
type of electrode is prepared by electrolytically
coating a piece of pure silver with silver chloride.
The coating is normally done by placing a cleaned
piece of silver into a bromide-free sodium chloride
solution. A second piece of silver is also placed in
the solution, and the two are connected to a
voltage source such that the electrode to be
chlorided is made positive with respect to the other.
The silver ions combine with the chloride ions from
the salt to produce neutral silver chloride molecules
that coat the silver electrode.
The impedance is frequency-dependent because of
the effect of the capacitance. Furthermore, both the
electrode potential and the impedance are varied
by an effect called polarization. Polarization is the
result of direct current passing through the metal-
electrolyte interface.
If the amplifier to which the electrodes are
connected has an extremely high input impedance,
the effect of polarization or any other change in
electrode impedance is minimized.
Size and type of electrode are also important in
determining the electrode impedance. Larger
electrodes tend to have lower impedances.
Surface electrodes generally have impedances of 2
to 10 kΩ, whereas small needle electrodes and
microelectrodes have much higher impedances.
For best results in reading or recording the
potentials measured by the electrodes, the input
impedance of the amplifier must be several times
that of the electrodes.
Microelectrodes:
Microelectrodes are electrodes with tips sufficiently
small to penetrate a single cell in order to obtain
readings from within the cell.
Microelectrodes are generally of two types: metal
and micropipet.
Microelectrodes, because of their small surface
areas, have impedances well up into the megΩ. For
this reason, amplifiers with extremely high
impedances are required to avoid loading the circuit
and to minimize the effects of small changes in
interface impedance.
Body Surface Electrodes:
The larger electrodes are usually associated with
EGG, since localization of the measurement is not
important, whereas smaller electrodes are used in
EEG and EMG measurements.
All the preceding electrodes suffer from a common
problem. They are all sensitive to movement, some
to a greater degree than others. Even the slightest
movement changes the thickness of the thin film of
electrolyte between metal and skin and thus causes
changes in the electrode potential and impedance.
The floating electrode, was introduced in varying
forms by several manufacturers. The principle of
this electrode is to practically eliminate movement
artifact by avoiding any direct contact of the metal
with the skin.

Special types of surface electrodes have been

developed for other applications. For example, a
special ear-clip electrode was developed for use as
a reference electrode for EEG measurements.
Scalp surface electrodes for EEG are usually small
disks about 7 mm in diameter or small solder pellets
that are placed on the cleaned scalp, using an
electrolyte paste.
Needle Electrodes:
To reduce interface impedance and, consequently,
movement artifacts, some
electroencephalographers use small subdermal
needles to penetrate the scalp for EEG
measurements.
Sometimes a special instrument, called a stereotaxic
instrument, is used to hold the animal's head and
guide the placement of electrodes.
The wires are either surgically implanted or
introduced by means of a hypodermic needle that is
later withdrawn, leaving the wire electrode in place.
Wire electrodes of copper or platinum are often
used for EMG pickup from specific muscles.
A single wire inside the needle serves as a unipolar
electrode which measures the potentials at the
point of contact with respect to some indifferent
reference.
If two wires are placed inside the needle, the
measurement is called bipolar and provides a very
localized measurement between the two wire tips.
Conductive catheters permit the recording of the
ECG from within the esophagus or even from within
the chambers of the heart itself.
Needle electrodes and other types of electrodes
that create an interface beneath the surface of the
skin seem to be less susceptible to movement
artifacts than surface electrodes, particularly those
of the older types. By making direct contact with
the subdermal tissue or the intercellular fluids,
these electrodes also seem to have lower
impedances than surface electrodes of comparable
interface area.
Since it is impossible to have a single electrode
interface to a solution, a second electrode is
required to act as a reference.
The usual method of measuring concentrations of
ions or gases is to use one electrode (sometimes
called the indicator or active electrode) that is
sensitive to the substance or ion being measured
and to choose the second, or reference electrode,
of a type that is insensitive to that substance.
Reference electrodes:
The hydrogen gas/hydrogen ion interface has been
designated as the reference interface and was
arbitrarily assigned an electrode potential of zero
volts. For this reason, it would seem logical that the
hydrogen electrode should actually be used as the
reference in biochemical measurements.
Unfortunately, the hydrogen electrode is not
sufficiently stable to serve as a good reference
electrode.
Two types of electrodes have interfaces sufficiently
stable to serve as reference electrodes—the silver-
silver chloride electrode and the calomel electrode.
The silver-silver chloride electrode used as a
reference in electrochemical measurements.
The electrode potential for the silver-silver chloride
reference electrode depends on the concentration
of the KCl.
An equally popular reference electrode is the
calomel electrode. Calomel is another name for
mercurous chloride, a chemical combination of
mercury and chloride ions. The interface between
mercury and mercurous chloride generates the
electrode potential. By placing the calomel side of
the interface in a potassium chloride (KCl) filling
solution, an electrolytic bridge is formed to the
sample solution from which the measurement is to
be made.
Like the silver-silver chloride electrode, the calomel
electrode is very stable over long periods of time
and serves well as a reference electrode in many
electrochemical measurements. Also, like the silver-
silver chloride electrode, the electrode potential of
the calomel electrode depends on the
concentration of KCl.
A calomel electrode with a 0.01-mole solution of KCl
has an electrode potential of 0.388 V, whereas a
saturated KCl solution (about 3.5 moles) has a
potential of only 0.247 V.
With a 0.01-mole-solution, the potential is 0.343V,
whereas for a 1 .0-mole solution the potential is
only 0.236 V for silver-silver chloride electrode.
The electrode must serve as a transducer to change
an ionic current into an electronic current.