TABLE OF CONTENTS Unfortunately, the ECG is often contaminated by noise and artifacts [9] that can be within the frequency band of interest and can manifest with similar morphologies as the ECG itself. Broadly speaking, ECG contaminants can be classified as [45]:
Power line interference: 50 0.2 Hz mains noise (or 60 Hz in many data sets [10]) with an amplitude of up to 50% of full scale deflection (FSD), the peak-to-peak ECG amplitude;
Electrode pop or contact noise: Loss of contact between the electrode and the skin manifesting as sharp changes with saturation at FSD levels for periods of around 1 second on the ECG (usually due to an electrode being nearly or completely pulled off);
Patient-electrode motion artifacts: Movement of the electrode away from the contact area on the skin, leading to variations in the impedance between the electrode and skin causing potential variations in the ECG and usually manifesting themselves as rapid (but continuous) baseline jumps or complete saturation for up to 0.5 second;
Electromyographic (EMG) noise: Electrical activity due to muscle contractions lasting around 50 ms between dc and 10,000 Hz with an average amplitude of 10% FSD level;
Baseline drift: Usually from respiration with an amplitude of around 15% FSD at frequencies drifting between 0.15 and 0.3 Hz;
Data collecting device noise: Artifacts generated by the signal processing hardware, such as signal saturation;
Electrosurgical noise: Noise...
