Influence of age and somatic variables, height, weight and chest circumference on electrocardiogram-vectorcardiogram

It is generally believed that the electro-vectorcardiogram (ECG/VCG) changes with age and that somatic (constitutional) variables such as body weight, height and chest circumference influence the ECG/VCG significantly. Several reports correlating the ECG/VCG with age or with the somatic variables have been published. In these studies, the lead systems used and the methods employed to evaluate the ECG have been diverse, the populations and the age groups studied have been different and the number of subjects studied has been relatively small, except in very few instances. The purpose of this study was to reinvestigate the relationship between age and somatic variables and the ECG/VCG on a sample containing young and old subjects of both sexes and derived from the same community.