Which is the most commonly monitored ECG lead?

Which is the most commonly monitored ECG lead?

Lead II is used for continuous monitoring because it gives a good P wave and a reasonable QRS complex for fair delineation of rhythm abnormalities.

If ST segment monitoring in acute coronary syndrome is the aim of monitoring, V5 may be a better lead as ST shifts are often well seen in chest leads. In inferior leads the amplitude of ST shifts are generally lower.

It is always a good practice to look at the baseline ECG to choose which lead to monitor in each person. If lead II is almost equiphasic in the given person, monitoring lead II may give a lot of false ‘asystole’ alarms and cause ‘alarm fatigue’ for the staff so that they may not attend a true alarm later.